


Tripping Down the Rabbit Hole

by Charbonne



Category: Lucifer (TV), Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Realities, An Angel Walks Into a Bar..., Gabriel (Supernatural) Lives, Gabriel Gets Therapy, Gen, Linda is Still Not That Kind of Doctor, Lucifer and Chloe are Complicated, Post-Episode: s13e22 Exodus, Post-Season/Series 03, gabriel is confused
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-05
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2019-10-22 21:32:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 27,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17670482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Charbonne/pseuds/Charbonne
Summary: Gabriel wakes up in a nightclub. Not that he minds. After all, he's used to being in places like that all the time. What's really confusing is that Lucifer runs the place and apparently enjoys life amongst humans. Oh, and he's a consultant for the LAPD. It gets even worse when a dead body appears bearing a strong resemblance to him. What the heck is happening here?





	1. Well, It's a Rifle

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I do realize I have several other stories I'm working on, but I figured that I'd get this out of my head so that I can finish work on other projects. I doubt I'll finish this before the new season of Lucifer comes out, but I'll just enjoy writing it nonetheless.

Gabriel groaned as he opened his eyes, thinking that for once, he’d like to wake up someplace pleasant. The Bahamas. Fiji. Rio De Janeiro. Heck, he’d take being in Apocalypse world again if it meant that his head wasn’t throbbing incessantly. Which, honestly, the loud thumping music? Great for a party, not so great for an archangel that was probably nursing one hell of a hangover that he couldn’t recall drinking enough for.

He reached out blindly, grabbing onto the first thing he could reach, and cracked his eyes open when the item rolled under his palm. A tiled wall holding a toilet paper dispenser greeted him, and he cocked his head to the side, confused. A further perusal of his surroundings and he discovered that he was inside a bathroom stall, wedged between the toilet and the wall. Well, this was awkward.

He fumbled a bit as he grabbed onto the toilet bowl and pulled himself unsteadily to his feet. Ugh, this was why he stopped doing drinking games with the Aesir. They always seemed to be completely into drinking excessively, and while Gabriel could match them drink for drink, he wasn’t the one famous for it. Which, that reminded him. What party had he been at that he was passed out in the bathroom drunker than a skunk?

And would the room stop swaying? It was almost like he was on a boat in the middle of the ocean. Ugh, he was both hung over _and_ drunk. Great. Whatever bender he’d gone on had to be one of the best ones he’d ever run across. There was no way he’d come away from a party that good if he could help it. Heck, he couldn’t recall the last time he’d been hung over.  Either way, he just felt awful, and his wings only reminded him that he was in a much too small stall.

He froze, his brow furrowing as he looked behind him. Golden brown wings extended from his shoulders, and he reached back to poke at them and pull at one feather before retracting with a hiss. Oh, that didn’t feel great. Never mind then, he had wings. When did they become physical? They weren’t supposed to be. Which, he’d argued with Asmodeus about for hours before the demon prince sewed his mouth shut. Actually, thinking about it, wasn’t he in the middle of another apocalypse?

Yeah, something was fishy. There was no way he managed to zap himself to somewhere else. He was in the same place as those Winchesters, Lucifer, Castiel, Jack, and all those survivors. He had been completely unwilling to leave to save himself, understanding that he was likely going to die facing Michael.

Which, oh look. There it was. A nice stab wound in the middle of his chest. That might actually explain his dizziness and general unsteadiness. However, that did _not_ explain how the hell he ended up in a bathroom stall at what sounded like some kind of rave party. Okay, yeah, sure, raves were great, but this was ridiculous.

He slumped down onto the toilet and took a deep breath. Okay, he was in some weird place after getting stabbed by his brother. Which yeah, he was going to have some very choice words for Michael the next time he talked to him. The hell did he do? Somehow zap Gabriel to some weird afterlife? As far as he knew, angels went to The Empty. They didn’t _have_ an afterlife. Which meant either Michael had decided to screw with him and chuck him into some pocket dimension (really, Michael did _not_ have enough imagination to throw Gabriel into some kind of crazy scene like this) or he was somewhere else.

Well, the first thing Gabriel needed to do was figure out _exactly_ where he was. Which meant that he had to change his getup. Now that his head was starting to stop feeling like a bongo drum, he could definitely hear the music better, and it certainly didn’t sound like a rave. Night club? That was likely. Maybe.

He snapped, but didn’t feel his grace accommodate his desire. Looking down, nope, he was still wearing the getup he’d been stabbed in. Wonderful. Snapping again didn’t produce the desired effect, so he sighed and closed up his jacket, thinking that appearing in the middle of a night club with what looked to be a gallon of blood on his shirt was socially unacceptable. Not to mention it’d attract the type of attention that he didn’t want to have. He glanced back toward his wings and sighed. Okay, those needed to go. How was going to be tricky.

In the end, he managed it by figuring out that they retracted, kind of like a cat’s claws. Well, that was handy. Stepping out of the stall led him face to face with his appearance, which nope, that hadn’t changed from the vessel he was wearing. Good thing he’d sent his vessel’s soul to Heaven years ago. He had a feeling said vessel wouldn’t have appreciated the face lift he’d gotten from Loki. Giving himself a once-over, he determined that he didn’t look too much like he was supposed to be a corpse, which was a bonus.

Stepping out of the bathroom, he decided to follow the sounds of music, thinking that he had to figure out where he was. That led him to what looked like the most exclusive night club he’d ever seen, with dancers and people well… It was a good thing he wasn’t a good little angel anymore, otherwise he figured his little divine sensibilities would be offended. His eyes scanned the crowd, thinking this had to be a heck of a party place if it was this busy every night.

Gabriel stepped down the stairs, careful to use the railing and avoiding the various people coming and going. He knew he was getting looks, but it wasn’t like they could do anything to him. Making his way to the bar, he took a seat and considered his options before the bartender came over. “Double of scotch, and hope you don’t mind some questions.”

The bartender, a guy that looked like he was in his late twenties, blinked and looked him over. “Depends on the questions.” He poured Gabriel’s drink and slid it over.

“Oh, these are gonna be some weird ones, but I’m kind of a weird guy, so don’t worry about it.” Gabriel took a sip of his drink and blinked in surprise. Oh, good stuff. He glanced over the crowd and shrugged. “First weirdo question. Where am I?”

“You’re not high, are you?”

The bartender looked him over, and Gabriel snorted.”Eh, might be a bit, but just humor me here.”

“Lux night club, L.A.”

“Oh, City of Angels, huh? Never heard of a Lux in the city though. How long’s it been here?”

The bartender looked at him like he was crazy, but hey, Gabriel figured he could be excused. Eight years in captivity by a demon meant that he was a bit behind on the times. Apparently the bartender was going to either humor him or take pity because he stated, “Since 2011. Mister Morningstar bought it and gave the building a makeover.”

That caused Gabriel’s eyebrows to rise. “Morningstar?”

“Yeah, Lucifer Morningstar. He’s usually here in the evenings. Doesn’t seem like he is tonight though.”

Gabriel gave the man a disbelieving look. “Lucifer. That’s his name? Wow, did his parents hate him?”

“If you hear him talk about his father, I’d say at least one of them did.” The bartender shrugged. I don’t get into it. I’m not paid enough to.”

“Fair point.” Gabriel shook his head. “Well, thanks for the info.” He reached for his pockets and patted them down, finding his wallet and noting how much was in it. It wasn’t a whole lot, but he could certainly have a few drinks and relax for a bit. He shook his head and ordered up another drink, scanning the crowd. It was really too bad he had a stab wound in his chest because he was pretty sure he could do with a distraction.

“You look like you’d be his type.”

Gabriel’s head whipped around to stare at the bartender, trying to figure out if the man was serious. “Excuse me?”

“He has a type. Mister Morningstar, I mean.” The bartender looked at him with interest. “He does favors for people, and you look like you might be looking for one.”

“Really.” Gabriel didn’t know which was worse. The fact that he probably looked like some kind of hobo, or that he might actually need some kind of help. Probably a mix of both.

“Really.” The bartender shrugged. “I mean, his favors are good, and I hear he’s got some people in high places to help people, so it couldn’t hurt to ask for one, right?”

“With a name like Lucifer, you really think it’s a good idea to ask for a favor from someone who’s named after Satan?”

As the bartender shrugged again, Gabriel blinked and leaned back. Okay, that was informative. He was left wondering about that as the bartender gave him another scotch before he shrugged it off. He must look really pathetic then. Besides he had to figure out what was up with this Lucifer guy and hope that it actually _wasn’t_ his brother. As much as he learned his tricks from Luci, he couldn’t be sure that he’d survive an attack from his elder brother at the moment.

Which, it really sucked that he was taking the whole responsibility thing seriously. There were plenty of women giving him appraising looks and all he could do was shake his head at each of them. But, he thought with a sigh, he couldn’t partake. Not in the women. He had to figure out just what in the world was going on.

It was a while before something interesting happened. Gabriel had decided to engage the bartender in a bit of small talk when someone came up to the bar and reached over to grab a bottle and glass. Blinking, Gabriel watched the man pour himself a measure of whiskey before he replaced the bottle. Maybe it was the lingering feeling of dizziness, or maybe it was because Gabriel was having a pretty weird night, but he decided to speak up. “Whoa man, you can’t just reach over the bar like that.”

The man, who definitely pegged as the tall, dark, and handsome type, stopped and glanced over to him before seeming to do a double take. Eyebrows rising high over dark eyes, the man looked him over a bit before he groaned and spoke in a distinctly British accent. “Oh great. Let me guess. Dad has a message for me? Well, you can go back and send him a message: Bugger off!”

“Uh, I don’t know your dad?” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Besides, what makes you think I’m the messenger type?”

“Oh please brother, don’t take me for a fool.” The man took a sip before pointing at Gabriel. “After all, what else would the Messenger be doing visiting me?”

“Okay, one, I’m not your brother. Two, I _really_ doubt I’d be delivering messages from your dad.” Gabriel crossed his arms, giving the man an unamused look and suppressing a wince. “Three, I’m _not_ any kind of messenger.” At least none that this guy would be familiar with.

“Well, I’m not lending you money again.” Gabriel gave the guy a weird look. “What? You still owe me for the last time I lent you money, Gabriel.”

Gabriel’s eyes narrowed, and before he thought about it, his wings were already unfurling from his back as he grabbed the guy’s arm. He tried to fly off to take this guy away to talk privately but all his wings proceeded to do was knock over part of the bar’s contents as all talk suddenly ceased. He simply locked eyes with the guy he had a hold of and sighed. “There’s wings coming out of my back, aren’t there?”

“Yes, there are, and you should know better than to show yours off, _brother_.” The man looked them over before looking back at Gabriel. “Are you going to tuck them away now?”

“Trying to, _thanks_.” And Gabriel was. Unfortunately he wasn’t doing it fast enough before the guy got a disgruntled look on his face and grabbed Gabriel by his arm to start tugging him along toward an elevator.

Gabriel was left trying to keep his wings from flailing around, gritting his teeth as the movement jostled his stab wound. The fact that the man was manhandling him was enough to either prove to Gabriel that he was weaker than he liked, or the guy was more than what he seemed. His own angel blade was likely missing, which meant that he couldn’t just stab the man if he got violent, but he could still smite him.

The man turned toward the crowd and gave them a brief wave as he punched for one of the upper floors. As the doors closed, he turned to look over Gabriel. “Be glad that most of my patrons are likely too drunk to remember that you have wings. That still leaves the problem that you were sent with a message. Well, out with it.”

Gabriel had managed to retract one of his wings by that point and glared at the man. “I told you, I don’t _have_ a message. Also, how the hell did you know who I am?”

“This charade is getting old. You damn well know how I know who you are.” The man’s hands were now shoved into his pockets, but his dark eyes seemed to try and bore into Gabriel. “Lucifer Morningstar. Your _older_ brother? Does that ring a bell?”

“Well, I’ve gotta say, the vessel’s an upgrade,” Gabriel snarked. “Definitely better than the guy you were in before. Definitely have the dark and menacing bit down, though. A plus for effort, by the way.”

“Vessel? What are you talking about?” Lucifer’s eyes peered at Gabriel.

“Angelic vessel? How’d you get the poor S.O.B to say yes anyway? I know you were chasing down the Samsquatch to jump into and succeeded until he chucked you back into the Cage.” Gabriel paused, finally forcing his other wing back into… wherever it went while it was retracted. “That… doesn’t ring any bells, does it?”

“Nary a chime, I’m afraid.” Lucifer appraised him for a bit. “I’m starting to wonder myself if you’re my brother after all. He knows how to deal with his wings. You were just flailing yours about like some sort of epileptic monkey.”

“Yeah, well, can we continue this conversation where I can sit down?” Gabriel was not enjoying the dizziness that had reared its ugly head while he’d been manhandled. “I’ve kind of lost a lot of blood recently and I’m not healing fast enough.”

Lucifer’s eyebrows shot up and he pulled out a cell phone. Dialing quickly, he held the phone to his ear as he pulled Gabriel out of the elevator as soon as it opened. “Oh, please tell me that you’ll answer your ph-Oh, hello doctor! I have a bit of a question. Would you be willing to come to the penthouse?”

Lucifer pushed Gabriel down onto a couch and Gabriel’s eyes shut of their own volition. He then hissed as he felt Lucifer start patting around his torso before undoing his jacket. He heard Lucifer’s hiss of surprise and winced as Lucifer resumed speaking. “…No, I’m not having a crisis per se, but I have someone potentially bleeding to death. Looks like someone stabbed him in the chest.” A brief pause where Gabriel swore he could hear someone arguing on the other end before Lucifer huffed with impatience. “No, I can’t bring him to the hospital! He’s not mortal. He flashed his wings off to the entirety of the patrons of Lux.”

Gabriel cracked an eye open. Lucifer was pacing, running his hands through his hair and looking flustered. That was new. “Not sure who you’re talking to, but I’m pretty sure I’ll heal eventually. Not dying yet.”

Lucifer snorted and pointed his finger at Gabriel. “You don’t get a say little brother. I don’t know what’s going on here, but I intend to get to the bottom of this and punish whoever did this to you! …Sorry Linda, I wasn’t speaking to you. I just have a very ungrateful brother on my hands at the moment.”

Gabriel huffed before wincing. “Not saying I’m ungrateful Luci, but I barely know what’s going on myself. Who’s Linda?”

“My therapist.” Lucifer rolled his eyes as he listened to something from the phone. “Yes, thank you doctor. I’ll see you soon.” Lucifer tossed the phone onto the piano in the room (Lucifer had a piano?) before walking back toward Gabriel. “She’ll be here shortly. Meanwhile, you’re going to tell me how this happened.”

“Considering I know your track record for dealing with Michael? Not happening bro.” Gabriel winced again as Lucifer manoeuvred Gabriel into laying down with his feet on the arm of the couch. “Besides, didn’t you try and stab me before?”

“Why the hell would I stab you?” Lucifer looked genuinely confused. “I’ve never attacked you.”

Gabriel snorted. “Yeah, sure, and the whole thing with the other gods never happened.”

Lucifer leaned back and was staring at Gabriel again, and Gabriel got the distinct impression he was missing something. “Dear me, did you go and hit your head too? Is this some sort of trauma-induced amnesia or something?”

“When’s the last time we saw each other?”

“Before I was thrown from Heaven. I became Father’s jailer in Hell as punishment for rebelling.” Lucifer was back to studying Gabriel. “I only recently quit that job and went to work for myself as the owner of Lux. What do you remember happening?”

No Cage. Lucifer didn’t remember the Cage, or the Apocalypse. “You rebelled and Fell. Then you tortured the first humans into becoming demons and God had Michael throw you into the Cage.”

“Why on Earth would Michael throw me anywhere?” Lucifer snorted. “And why would I torture the first humans when they weren’t deserving of it? I’m the punisher of their crimes, I don’t make them into demons.”

Gabriel suddenly felt a sinking sensation. “And you’ve never heard the name Winchester before?”

“Well it’s a rifle, I can tell you that much.” Lucifer frowned. “That wasn’t the answer you were looking for, was it?”

“No, it wasn’t.” Gabriel sighed. “Apocalypse never happened?”

“No.” Lucifer stood and started pacing. “So, we both experienced different events, and I don’t even know why you wanted to talk about a rifle of all things, let alone why you’re insistent that the Apocalypse is imminent.” A considering look crossed his face. “Oh, I get it now.”

Gabriel arched an eyebrow. “Oh really?” he asked drily.

“Of course.” Lucifer gestured upward. “This is another one of His tests.”

Gabriel stared. “Come again?”

“Well it all makes sense now.”  Lucifer paused in his pacing and shook his head. “Apparently He sent you here with altered memories to try and get me to fix you. He wants me to do the right thing and help an angel.”  Lucifer sneered. “Well, that’s not going to work now, is it? I’ve already figured out His little plan and I won’t play His game.”

“Wow, and I thought I was self-centered.” Gabriel looked incredulously at Lucifer. “You really think God’s doing all this crap to what? Make you good? Lucifer, you do realize that you make that choice, not Dad.”

“Well, what’s your explanation then?”

“If I had to wager a guess,” Gabriel mused, “I’d say that Michael’s screwing with me. Taking away my powers and making me unable to use my wings, that almost sounds like how Heaven deals with fallen angels, except I’m an archangel and that shouldn’t be possible. So instead he made a pocket dimension and shoved me into it after stabbing me.”

Lucifer snorted. “That’s unlikely. No angel has that power.”

“Hello? Did you miss the fact I said _Michael_ did this to me?” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Most powerful of the archangels Michael? Firstborn Michael?”

“Firstborn? In what universe is Michael firstborn?” Lucifer actually huffed a laugh. “Michael’s my twin brother and we’re both younger than Amenadiel. What makes you think that’s changed?”

Part of Lucifer’s statement struck Gabriel, and he wrestled with it for a moment before he blurted out, “Now there’s a new one.”

Lucifer had been heading to the bar but he turned again to address Gabriel. “What’s a new one?”

“Well, you remember things differently, I can’t use any of my abilities that I’m used to, and the Apocalypse and any mention of Winchester are nonexistent.” Gabriel didn’t know whether he should be relieved or annoyed by this turn of events. “I’m in another universe.”

“That would be plausible except for one thing.” Lucifer pointed toward Gabriel. “You look exactly like my Gabriel.”

“Never said my theory was perfect.” Gabriel shrugged, then regretted it. “Ow, did you know being stabbed sucks?”

“I’d imagine it’s just as bad as being shot.” Lucifer shrugged and started for the elevator. “I’m going to see if the doctor’s arrived yet.”

* * *

The ‘doctor’ Lucifer apparently knew was an older woman with blonde hair and glasses. Gabriel amused himself with the fact that it looked like Lucifer was completely oblivious to the fact that Linda was chastising him for calling her instead of taking Gabriel to the hospital, but then again, Gabriel wasn’t sure what they would find in his makeup if he went. Either that, or his wings would just pop out of nowhere and make a bad situation even worse.

Either way, she seemed to order Lucifer around to get her the things she needed to stitch up Gabriel’s chest wound and check him over completely before she sighed and turned her attention to her ‘patient’. “So, I hear you’re Lucifer’s brother?”

“Um, kinda?” Gabriel shrugged. He’d been manoeuvred upright after Linda finished treating him, and was even now holding a glass of orange juice. Lucifer had seemed put out that Linda had refused to let him make a screwdriver for his brother. “It’s complicated. How much do you know?”

“Well, Lucifer’s the devil, he has a lot of siblings, and Heaven and Hell are very real places.” Linda rose her eyebrows as she looked at Gabriel. “Does that cover it?”

“That’s pretty accurate.” Gabriel shifted to get comfortable. “Yeah, I guess I’m his brother.”

“You guess?”

“That’d fall under the ‘it’s complicated’ statement.” He took a drink of the orange juice and made a face. “So no to anything alcoholic?”

Linda gave him a stern look. “You just lost a lot of blood. Alcohol isn’t good for that. Or um…” She glanced toward Lucifer before returning her gaze to Gabriel. “No, it’s definitely not good for blood loss.”

“Lucky me.” Gabriel smirked. “I got the one doctor that knows about angels, and she doesn’t believe I can’t get drunk off of a mai tai.”

“And I’m still not that type of doctor.” Linda shot Lucifer a stern look.

Lucifer spread his hands innocently. “What? I thought that you had plenty of schooling for medicine.”

“Years ago.” Linda snorted.

Gabriel smirked and shrugged. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m very well aware of the difference between a therapist and a medical doctor.” He winked toward Linda. “It’s the rest of my family that’s been stuck elsewhere that aren’t that up on human stuff.”

“That is one thing I’ve been meaning to ask.” Linda glanced between the two. “Lucifer’s been on Earth now for five years, but you seem more human?”

“Doc, I’ve been on Earth for millennia.” Gabriel grinned and gestured toward Lucifer. “That’s the biggest difference between the two of us. He’s seen the worst, and I’ve seen everything between that and the best.”

Lucifer frowned. “Why haven’t I heard about your earthly exploits?” A grin slowly grew as he added, “Don’t tell me that Father has another disappointment in the family.”

Gabriel bobbed his head a bit as he seemed to contemplate that answer. “Well, I’m not sure if you can call me a disappointment, but I guess I’m a runaway.”

“Ah, bravo! Gave our Father a big middle finger, did you?” Lucifer strode over and clapped Gabriel on the shoulder. “Good for you! I’m glad that someone saw His hypocrisy for what it was!”

Gabriel gave Lucifer a dirty look. “Yeah, well, I’m not airing that dirty laundry for everyone to hear, so sorry if you think you’re missing that opportunity.”

Linda looked between the two and threw up her hands. “I’ll just wait until your next appointment to hear all about it. Meanwhile I have plenty of things I need to work on.”

“Yes of course.” Lucifer waited for Linda to stand before escorting her to the elevator. “I’ll see you then doctor.”

Gabriel watched the two of them as Lucifer gave his goodbyes and frowned. When the door closed, he cocked his head to one side and observed his brother. “Wow, the Devil has a therapist. I bet that’s been a hell of a conversation upstairs.”

“I wouldn’t know. Our siblings don’t talk to me unless they want me to do something.” Lucifer turned from the elevator back to the bar. “So now that the doctor’s not here, how about we have a drink to celebrate the fact we’re meeting again after so long?”

“Ugh, please.” Gabriel set his juice down and crossed his arms carefully as he watched Lucifer pour a couple of drinks for the two of them. “You know, I don’t think my Lucifer ever cared about any humans ever in his life.”

“Not even those… what did you call them? Vessels?” Lucifer finished pouring his drink and walked over to hand Gabriel his glass. “How exactly does that work, precisely? It sounds awfully like you ride around in people instead of your own bodies.”

“You have to ask permission.” Gabriel gestured to his body. “Take this guy. I’ve been riding around in him for millennia now, but I had to ask him for a week before he let me in. And believe me, if I didn’t? There would be dead humans all over the place from seeing my true form.”

“So like seeing our wings. Humans can’t see those without some serious complications, not the least of which is obsession with the divine.” Lucifer took a seat opposite Gabriel. “I’m still not sure about your alternate reality theory, but it’s sounding more plausible.”

“Yeah, well, this oughta be interesting to you. There’s four of the highest tier angels back home, and you and me?” Gabriel gestured between the two of them. “We’re two of them.”

“Oh really? If you and I are two of them, then who are the other two?”

“Raphael and Michael.” At Lucifer’s incredulous look, Gabriel huffed. “What?”

Lucifer shook his head. “Michael and Raphael? They’re both notoriously uptight and Raphael isn’t nearly as powerful as he claims to be.”

“Really?” Gabriel snorted. “I think that you’re just jealous since neither one have fallen.”

“Why would I be jealous of that?” Lucifer waved the statement off. “After all, I’m the one walking around down here with no responsibilities to our Father, while they’re still following His orders without question.”

Gabriel snickered. “Point.” He sighed, taking a drink out of his glass and staring down into it. “Luci, I’ve gotta admit, this is probably the most normal conversation I’ve had with you since you fell. First time we talked, you tried to stab me, and the last time? Well, let’s just say that you were blaming everyone but yourself for your problems.”

“To be fair, I still blame God, but not for my fall. Everything else, on the other hand, is fair game.” Lucifer looked into his own glass for a moment before he stood abruptly and walked over to the piano. “So Gabriel, have any requests?”

“Requests? Wait, you’re going to play?” Gabriel looked incredulously at his brother. “Why?”

Lucifer gestured between the two of them. “Well, I find it fitting since we’ve been reunited. Now come, you have to have a request.”

“Wow.” Gabriel shook his head. He then sighed and wiggled on the couch a bit, thinking that lying down sounded like a good idea. “Nah, actually, I think… I think I might actually be tired.”

Lucifer peered at Gabriel for a moment before he walked back over. “All right. Show me your wings.”

“What?”

“Come now, if you’re getting tired and you’re not healing, then I should see how depleted your powers are.” Lucifer gestured for Gabriel to turn. “Your wings are the best way to gauge that.”

“I’d say buy me a drink first, but you technically did that already.” Not that Gabriel was going to say anything, but he was nervous about Lucifer looking at his wings. He then frowned, wondering exactly how he was supposed to show them off. “Um…”

Lucifer sighed in exasperation and moved to stand before him. “It’s as easy as breathing. Come on, you’ve been around since the beginning of time. It can’t be that hard.”

“Correction, I’ve been around since _before_ time, actually.” He sighed and concentrated on the sensation of displaying them. He then thought about flying, at which point a soft whoosh was all he heard as his wings reappeared. “Huh, that was easier than I thought.”

Lucifer seemed to examine them with a critical eye, frowning as he walked around. He then let out a gasp that caused Gabriel to look over his shoulder. “Well, this isn’t good.”

“What’s not good?”

Instead of an answer, Lucifer laid a hand on one of his wings and ran it along until Gabriel felt an uncomfortable sensation of skin on skin. “You said you were stabbed, right? What else?”

Gabriel snorted. “Besides one of your demons getting ahold of me and torturing me while draining my grace?”

“Your what?”

Gabriel could have laughed at Lucifer’s confused look, but he rolled his eyes. “Grace. Angel mojo. The stuff we have instead of souls. Grace.”

“Well first of all, that’s a ridiculous term,” Lucifer snarked. “Second, your wings are bald back here. At least half of your pinions are missing, and you have the beginnings of feathers regrowing. No wonder your powers are weak.” Lucifer rounded back to Gabriel’s front and sat down in another chair, watching Gabriel. “Just what kind of world are you from that you don’t even know much about your wings?”

Gabriel snorted and pointed a finger at Lucifer, his eyes narrowing. “Hey, I know plenty about my wings. My wings are usually prismatic beams of light that stretch across multiple dimensions and I have _six_ of them. I’m not used to having two or them being visible.”

“Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but you have two now,” Lucifer drawled. “Now, if they were in complete health, I would say that your powers are just fine, but as _here_ an angel’s wings reflect the state of our divinity, I’d say that you had a pretty rough fall.”

“And I bet your wings are pretty much useless then.”

“Oh no, quite the contrary.” Lucifer waved a hand upward in a vague gesture. “Our Father has a sick sense of humor. I cut mine off, and they grew back.”

Gabriel sat back, mouth gaping open as he digested what he was just told. “You _cut_ your wings off?”

Lucifer gave Gabriel a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Of course I did. I gave God the biggest middle finger an angel could give by cutting them off and burning them. Too bad they have an annoying habit of growing back. Never affected my gifts, but then again, that’s just the way of things, I suppose.”

Gabriel sighed as he tipped his head back. “Well, got any plans for what I should do now? I don’t know the state of your Heaven, and I’d rather not get smitten the moment I go up for a peek.”

“Well, I suppose I could offer you a favor.”

Gabriel snorted without looking toward the other angel. “Yeah, that’s a big fat no.”

Lucifer chuckled and put a hand to his chest. “I’m wounded you think so poorly of me, brother.”

“Sure you are.” Gabriel sighed, then closed his eyes and concentrated on folding the wings back into himself. “This isn’t going to get any easier, is it?”

“Not while they’re injured, no.” Lucifer looked bemused, a slight smirk playing across his face. “When they’re healed, it should be as easy as breathing. Though if you’re not used to real wings, I can see why you have trouble with them.”

Finally getting the last wing tucked away, Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Ha ha. My wings are real enough.”

“Of course they are.” Lucifer stood, stretching before he looked Gabriel over. “You’ll be fine up here? I need to go back downstairs and deal with my customers. Might even bring you a treat.”

“Unless it’s got enough sugar to put me into a diabetic coma, not interested.” Gabriel sighed and laid back. Closing his eyes, he laid his arms carefully across his chest. Man, he was beat.

He missed Lucifer’s considering look as well as the fact that he’d paused on his way to the elevator to retrieve his phone. Instead, he barely caught the quiet “Sleep well” before he finally slipped into slumber.

* * *

Lucifer paced in the main room of his club, annoyed with himself that he’d managed to somehow wind up losing one brother and gaining another. Not that Amenadiel would care about it, as he’d obviously returned to the Silver City. However, he knew he’d need assistance, and as that assistance was something that Maze couldn’t provide, he was reduced to requesting his brother’s assistance.

As it was, Maze had stopped by earlier that evening to check that he was alright. Lucifer had taken that opportunity to inform her that he had a guest that needed an eye kept on, and while she had rolled her eyes, she had gone up to find out what new problem had arisen. Now he’d tried to pray to Amenadiel several times, attempting to contact the only relative he knew that could throw light on the latest problem he seemed to be saddled with.

The fact was, Gabriel shouldn’t _be_ on Earth. God didn’t want his messenger far from his side, not when Gabriel literally was the hub of contact with all of the rest of their brethren. It was his Gift, same as Lucifer’s ability to draw out hidden desire and Amenadiel’s ability to control time. There was no way that the Messenger, the one that made it possible for prayers to be heard, was down on Earth unless something biblical was going on and he was to announce something akin to the next coming of Christ or whatever Dad had cooked up.

There was also no way that Michael, of all people, would be the one that would try and kill Gabriel. Lucifer knew his twin quite well, and Michael was obedient to a fault, much like Amenadiel was. Unless Michael had finally cracked his gourd, which Lucifer highly doubted, then the only logical conclusion that Lucifer could come up with was that Gabriel was somehow telling the truth and somehow ended up in another dimension.

Maybe that was the point, he thought. Perhaps this was some sort of game his Father had cooked up to try yet again to get him to acquiesce to His demands and fix whatever mess He managed to make. Not that it’d do Him any good. Lucifer could already see through His scheme. If somehow dear old Dad had managed to pull someone from another universe just to get Lucifer to fix the problem, he wasn’t going to take the bait.

Sighing, he looked down into his tumbler and stared at the amber liquid inside before he quaffed it, feeling the burn as the sound of wing flaps reached his ears. Raising a brow, Lucifer glanced behind him to see Amenadiel back in his robes, standing as tall and proud as he always did. Lucifer almost expected there to be a smug look on his face too, but surprisingly his brother didn’t have one.

“I heard your call, Lucifer.” Amenadiel glanced around, seeming to try and figure out exactly why Lucifer would call him of all people. “What trouble did you get yourself into this time?”

“Me? Trouble?” Lucifer snorted. “Don’t be ridiculous, brother. I just wanted to call to see how the family’s doing. Has Dad finally popped His lid about my refusal to go back to Hell yet?”

“I don’t know Father’s thoughts any more than you do, Luci.” Amenadiel frowned, crossing his arms. “Nor do I believe that this is a visit to ask about our siblings. I haven’t been back in Heaven but for a week, and I feel like you’ve already caused trouble.”

Lucifer pointed toward Amenadiel after refilling his drink. “Ah, that’s where you’re wrong. Tell me, how is Gabriel doing?”

“Gabriel?” Amenadiel’s brows rose in confusion. “I haven’t seen him since I came here trying to persuade you to go back to Hell. Why?”

“Funny story, really.” Lucifer walked over to settle himself on one of the couches. “I currently happen to be playing host to our younger brother, and he’s been stabbed.”

Amenadiel’s brows lowered in annoyance. “That’s not possible. Gabriel can’t be on Earth. The last time he was sent down-“

“Was to tell some poor sod that she was pregnant. Yes I know that.” Lucifer placed his tumbler down on the table before him, leaning forward. “But I just had to fix a problem of divine magnitude because our dear brother came to Lux and showed off his wings. In front of all my patrons. Needless to say, I had to do a bit of convincing that it was all part of a show or something because otherwise there’d be a line of people outside right now trying to get into my penthouse.”

“He’s in your penthouse?”

“Didn’t I just say that? Of course he is.” Lucifer leaned back, his brows drawn together. “That’s not the only kicker. He insisted that Michael stabbed him and that I had attempted to stab him before. Not just that, he was blathering on about the apocalypse and rifles before he fell asleep.”

Amenadiel crossed his arms, frowning as he shifted to glance upward. “Perhaps I should talk to him. I doubt that seeing you would do him any good.”

“And why is that?” Lucifer narrowed his gaze. “You believe that the Devil is incapable of caring for our injured brethren?”

“On the contrary,” Amenadiel stated. “If he thinks you stabbed him, I doubt he’d want to be anywhere near you.”

“Well, there’s just one problem with that.” Lucifer cocked his head to the side. “According to him, you don’t exist.”

“I don’t – Luci, that’s ridiculous! Why would he believe I don’t exist?”

“Because he thinks this is some sort of alternate reality where there’s only four archangels and Michael was firstborn.” Lucifer folded his own arms and watched Amenadiel. “I would really try to find out if it’s true that he’s not in Heaven, but..”

“I’ll go check.” Amenadiel sounded resigned. “Just keep an eye on him and _try_ to keep him out of trouble.”

Lucifer looked affronted. “You just like taking all the fun out of life.”

“I know you Lucifer. You’ll likely do something ridiculous and call it fun.” Amenadiel snorted, rolling his eyes.

“”All right, fine.” Lucifer held up a hand. “I will attempt to keep my shenanigans to a minimum. Don’t blame me if he decides to pull his own stunts.”

Amenadiel blinked, looking confused. “Why would you think he’d do something like that?”

Lucifer smirked. “Because somehow I doubt he’s the type that stays at home and reads. I get the feeling that he enjoys humanity just as much as I do.”

* * *

The voices trickled into his dreams, causing Gabriel to shift and shake his head trying to dispel them. One-sided conversations that Gabriel couldn’t even fathom. His face twisted in discomfort, slowly being roused from the sleep he was enjoying. When he opened his eyes, he was unprepared for the dark-skinned woman in tight black leather seated across from him. He pushed himself upright, wincing as he felt a pull on his stitches. The woman simply watched him, dark eyes peering at him while she flipped around a nasty-looking blade.

“You know, normally I’d go for a bit of BDSM,” he snarked, “but I don’t think I could handle that right now.”

The woman blinked, eyes narrowing as she examined him. “Well that’s new. An angel of God that likes the kinkier side of life.” She leaned forward, catching her blade and propping her chin in her other hand. “So which brother are you?”

“Uh, brother?”

“Yeah, Lucifer’s brother. You’ve got that whole divine vibe going for you.” The woman rose an eyebrow, clearly studying him.

Gabriel snorted, shaking his head to see if that shook the cobwebs loose. “Wow, I must really be out of it. I can’t even see your true form. You some kind of angel or something?”

“Hah! You wish!” The woman chuckled, bemused. “Demon. Hell’s best torturer. Been up topside for years now.”

Gabriel’s face fell as he heard that. His hands clenched the couch as he stared at the woman. “Demon.” He tried to summon up his angel blade, but found his hands suspiciously empty. He turned a glare toward the ‘woman’, hoping that his fear didn’t show. “Yeah, I’m gonna pass on the sexcapades. I dunno who you’re working for, but I’ve smote a demon prince. I doubt you’re anything as high.”

The woman’s face started, pulling back and shaking her head. “Wow. That’s a new one.”

Gabriel glared harder, raising his hand to prepare to snap. “Yeah, well, tough nuggets lady. Had enough trouble with one of you. I don’t plan on being another damsel in distress.” He snapped, then frowned as he didn’t feel the same rush of power that came from a smiting. He turned his attention toward his fingers, confused. “Um, that usually works…”

The demon giggled. “Oh wow, the snap of doom. I guess I should be quaking in my boots now, huh?”

“Shaddup.” Gabriel was now glaring at his fingers, trying to figure out why it wasn’t working. He had enough juice, he knew he did. So why wasn’t the demon getting flambéed?

“Look, Lucifer told me to keep an eye on you. I’m not gonna cross him if I can help it.” There was an unspoken note of something there that Gabriel could hear, but he sure as hell couldn’t figure out what it was. “You still didn’t answer my question. Which brother are you?”

“Give me your name, horse master, and I shall give you mine.” Gabriel smirked, eyes twinkling in challenge.

“Wow, did you just quote Lord of the Rings at me?” The demon actually rolled her eyes. “Nerd.”

“Hey, it’s a classic! Besides, it’s better than us playing nurse right now. I told you I’m not up for that.”

“Fine, whatever.” The demon flipped her blade around again, looking bored. “Mazikeen of the Lilum.”

Gabriel blinked, trying to figure out what the heck a lilum was. He’d certainly never heard of a term. “That’s a new one.”

“What’s that?”

“The lilum? Is that a new breed of demon or something?” Gabriel crossed his arms, making a face. “Kinda sounds like Lilith.”

“I’m one of her children.” Mazikeen rose an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of that.”

“Nope!” Gabriel shrugged. “Brand new info. Didn’t know demons could have kids outside of a cambion.”

“Did you hit your head or something?”

Gabriel snorted. “I wish. Maybe a concussion would make this all make sense. Name’s Gabriel.” Suddenly he gasped, his fingers flying to his temples as more murmuring invaded his head. “Ow! Turn down the volume, will you?”

Mazikeen tilted her head back, watching him with a frown on her face. “I didn’t say anything.”

“No, not you. Angel radio. It’s louder than it should be.”

“Angel… radio?” Mazikeen looked even more confused, and Gabriel scrunched his face up as he tried to listen in on what was going on. The volume only increased, and Gabriel pitched forward, groaning.

_He hasn’t been seen in a week-_

_God must have sent him on an errand-_

_Isn’t he supposed to be here-_

_I thought he was with Barachiel-_

_Didn’t he-_

_Why is-_

_Gabriel-_

_Gabriel-_

“Gabriel!”

Gabriel gasped, the voices finally dying down as he felt sick. What the heck was going on? His attention suddenly shifted as someone snapped their fingers in his face. His hand shot out to grab the offending digits, and he looked up to see Lucifer crouching before him, frowning.

“What on Earth is going on? I’ve been trying to get your attention for five minutes.”

“Something’s wrong.” Gabriel bit his lip before continuing. “Me tuning into the celestial airwaves shouldn’t hurt so much.”

“Well that’s never bothered you before.” Lucifer observed the younger angel with a frown. “You used to chatter with everyone over prayer.”

“What?” Now that was crazy. He hadn’t tuned into angel radio in millennia. Why was it bombarding him now?

“You’re the messenger. Of course every message goes through your brain. You’re like Heaven’s cell tower.” Lucifer looked rather perturbed. “You do remember that, right?”

“Uh, no.” Gabriel rubbed his temples. “Messenger, yes. CB radio for angels, no.”

“He does seem pretty out of it, Lucifer.” Mazikeen was standing close to the bar now with her arms crossed. “What’s wrong with him?”

“I honestly don’t know.” Lucifer’s lips pressed into a fine line. His eyes were now searching Gabriel’s. “What happened just now?”

“I don’t really know. One minute it was quiet, and then Bam! Nothing but noise.” Gabriel snorted. “I couldn’t even shut it off!”

“And I’m sure that wasn’t a pleasant experience.” Lucifer glanced over Gabriel’s shoulder with a bemused expression. “So, are those wings I see or are you just happy to see me?”

Gabriel hadn’t noticed, but the moment he looked behind him, he groaned. He poked a finger at Lucifer who was now grinning in open amusement. “One, ew. Two, I can’t control them. They seem to have a mind of their own!”

“Yes, well, premature ejaculation aside, I’m sure that those would cause quite the buzz if seen by the wrong people.” Lucifer stood, brushing off imaginary dirt from his suit. “Are you all right? You didn’t seem to be particularly enjoying this ‘angel radio.”

Gabriel sighed. “Look, I just want it to tone down. I can’t think and it felt like I went a round with Mike Tyson and lost.”

Lucifer’s brow pinched together as he considered Gabriel. “I’m afraid I’m the wrong person to ask. You’d have to ask yourself, really, and I don’t recall Gabriel ever having issues with his abilities.”

The younger angel closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He didn’t know what was worse, the idea that Lucifer assumed he knew about himself, or that he actually didn’t know what was going on with him. It was ridiculous to think that he’d been chucked into another reality, but then again, maybe the rift interfered with his death? Besides…

He looked up at Lucifer again, shaking his head gingerly. “So, where were you anyway? Not that I’m being needy, but the last time I was alone with a demon…” He shivered, recalling the feel of a needle jammed in his neck and his grace forcibly extracted.

“Oh!” Lucifer perked up and gestured toward Gabriel. “I asked for Amenadiel to see if he could find Gabriel – our Gabriel.”

“And?”

“He came back with a big batch of zilch.” Lucifer looked like he was chewing over the information. “Apparently Gabriel took a stroll down to Earth around the time that Amenadiel regained his wings and then everything went into radio silence. No one’s heard a peep from him since.”

“Which means you’re back to the ‘you’re my brother with issues’ theory?” Gabriel gave Lucifer a disbelieving look, hardly willing to trust that Lucifer was telling the truth. Heck, he wouldn’t even be with Lucifer still if it wasn’t for the fact that Gabriel still had any control over his own abilities.

“Well, yes and no.” Lucifer turned toward the bar and poured himself a drink. “You see, I’m somewhat at a loss as to how to explain you. Our Gabriel hardly leaves Dad’s side and the moment that he does, you appear. That hardly paints you as being two separate people. However, there’s some inconsistencies that I haven’t figured out yet.”

Gabriel frowned, crossing his arms and gesturing. “Go on.”

“Your wings, for example.” Lucifer turned and pointed a finger, indicating the feathered appendages currently resting behind Gabriel. “Our Gabriel has white feathers with a blue sheen. Yours, however…”

Gabriel glanced back behind him. Yeah, they were still the golden brown from earlier, though Gabriel could see a speckle of lighter and darker feathers throughout now that he was studying them closely. He stretched one out carefully, examining it and then letting it fall back into place. “Not even close to being white.”

“Exactly!” Lucifer poured another drink as Mazikeen decided to prowl around for her own. “I daresay that tells me that you’re not him, unless Father decided to make changes without telling anyone. The last person whose wings changed was Amenadiel, and that was after his fall.”

“You don’t think that happened with Gabriel?”

“No.” Lucifer handed Gabriel the other drink while taking a sip from his own. “He might not have been Dad’s favorite son, but he at least had some favor and never went against his wishes, pranks with me aside. Unless he changed in the time that I’ve been down in Hell, there’s no way that he could have had such a radical change.”

Gabriel couldn’t deny that one. Even the Host had a hard time changing unless something drastic happened, such as when the Apocalypse was in full swing and Castiel fell. The younger angel had rebelled because he didn’t believe anything that was happening was according to what their Father wanted.

He was startled out of his thoughts when Lucifer clapped his hands together, looking over Gabriel with a considering look. “Well, now that we’ve got that out of the way, how is that stab wound healing? I noticed that you haven’t been wincing or complaining about it. I take it your wound isn’t causing any more issues right now?”

“No, it seems fine.” Gabriel rubbed at his chest, wincing slightly, but it wasn’t pulling or anything when he moved. It was just sore. He stared suspiciously at Lucifer. “Why?”


	2. An Angelic Hot Spot

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow, I didn't expect this kind of response when I first posted this! Thanks to everyone that's commented, added kudos, and bookmarked this story. Hopefully this chapter lives up to the last one.

Gabriel didn’t know what was more surprising. That Lucifer had decided to drag him to a clothing store to replace the bloodstained ones he was wearing ( _Well, you can’t expect to walk around like a murder victim, can you?_ ) or that apparently Lucifer, _the Devil_ , moonlighted as a police consultant in homicide. Lucifer claimed that it let him stretch his metaphorical wings (Ha!) and allowed him to see that punishment went to those most deserving, which sounded suspiciously like his own jaunts through the mortal world disguised as Loki and serving humans their just desserts. The only thing missing was a distinct lack of sweets and he snagged those as quickly as he could in the form of a pack of Twizzlers while Lucifer took him to the police station ( _I do have work to do, and you brother are in no condition to be left on your lonesome. Maze does have her own duties to perform as a bounty hunter, after all._ ).

He could have claimed that it shocked him more, except he recalled the look on Lucifer’s face when he discovered that Gabriel had been stabbed to begin with. It all took on a surreal feeling as he couldn’t recall his own brothers caring enough about him to want to find out what happened to him. No one had looked for him when he pulled his disappearing act from Heaven, after all.

It all left him feeling like the rug was going to be pulled from under his feet as he entered the station, dodging people coming in and out as the police went about their business. He looked around in interest, however, noting the way that people seemed to either gravitate toward Lucifer (mostly the women) or moved out of his way like his very presence commanded it. Gabriel could have chuckled at the sight if he wasn’t sure that something was up and Lucifer was planning on betraying him the minute Gabriel let his guard down.

Lucifer seemed to know exactly where he was going, because he led Gabriel straight into the office spaces and made a beeline to one of the desks. The Devil grinned broadly as he approached it, and greeted the woman seated behind it with a hearty, “Detective!”

The woman, Gabriel noted, seemed like a slip of a woman with dark blond hair and blue eyes. Her sharp features softened into surprise as she looked up, her mouth falling into an ‘o’ shape as she spotted Lucifer. She didn’t seem to notice Gabriel, which suited him just fine as he settled against a corner to watch, shoving his hands into his jeans. “Oh, L-lucifer. I um, I didn’t expect that you’d be here.”

“And why wouldn’t I? We’re both supposed to be back today, unless you forgot that the higher-ups requested you to take a leave, and well, it is _dreadfully boring_ without your company.” Lucifer took a seat and lounged back, setting the coffee he insisted on getting for her on her desk.

“No, I just…” She seemed to be stumbling to figure out a way to respond, finally settling on a, “With what happened, I thought you’d have vanished. What with the…” She waved vaguely to her head, causing Gabriel’s eyebrows to shoot up.

“Well, you did request a bit of distance, which I did provide.” Lucifer looked quizzically at the woman. “Unless you require more time? I don’t doubt that you did get a frightful scare the last time we saw each other.”

“No no, it’s just…” She glanced back and spotted Gabriel. Her eyebrows raised and she looked back to Lucifer in exasperation. “Wow, really? Bringing another civilian into the precinct?”

“Ah, forgive me. I forgot to introduce the two of you.” Lucifer actually stood and gestured to Gabriel. “My brother, Gabriel. I actually had thought that you could help us with a case. Gabriel, Detective Chloe Decker. She’s my partner-in-crime in the LAPD.”

Chloe’s eyes seemed to bug out of her head as she scrambled up to extend a hand. “You’re Lucifer’s brother? Like, real brother? Gabriel? Wow, I um…” She seemed to be a bit scattered as she looked around her desk. “Sorry, I’m just… I didn’t expect to meet another…”

Gabriel for his part took her hand and looked toward Lucifer in confusion. “What in Dad’s name did you do to her, Luci? I mean, she looks like she’s about to fly apart. Um, no offence,” he added, directing it to the detective.

“None taken. He tends to do that to people.” Chloe speared Lucifer with a look, and Gabriel snickered at the faux innocent look Lucifer gave back. “We just had this case recently and I had some pretty big revelations shown to me.”

“Wait, he talks _willingly_ about being the Devil?” Gabriel gave Lucifer a look. “Wow bro, that’s not something you should advertise.”

“Well it’s not like she _believed me_ until recently!” Lucifer waved a hand dismissively. “Every time I tried to tell her the truth, she assumed that I was insane.”

Chloe turned her attention back to Gabriel. “And you’re really-“

“Gabriel, yeah.” Gabriel nodded slowly, fixing Lucifer with a look that clearly said ‘Don’t say a word!’ He wasn’t going to go around breaking people’s brains with proof of the divine. That could get messy really fast. “Just ex-nay on the angel-yay. I don’t wanna have that spread around.”

“Have what spread around?”

Gabriel turned to see another man standing behind them eating a pudding cup. He looked about average, but judging from the badge at his belt and the fact he was wearing casual clothes suggested to Gabriel he was a detective too. “My relation to _that_ guy.” He smirked at Lucifer’s incredulous look and he continued, ignoring the other angel for now. “Pretty sure Dad’s still pissed at him and He doesn’t want me anywhere near him so I’m trying to keep a low profile, if you know what I mean.”

The man looked between Lucifer and Gabriel, like he was trying to gauge how much of what Gabriel said was true, before he nodded. “I guess I can get that. Heck, I don’t think I’d wanna admit I was related either.” Sticking his spoon into the cup, he held out a hand. “Dan Espinoza. You two are brothers?”

Gabriel took it and sighed. “Yeah, unfortunately.” Lucifer snorted in derision and Gabriel couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face. “Gabriel…” Crap, what was a good last name? He hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Winchester.” Oh, _that_ was _so_ much better. Hopefully he didn’t run into those two yahoos while he was here. “Just flew in last night. Luci here’s showing me around.”

“A police precinct?” The question sounded dubious, and Gabriel shrugged. “That doesn’t sound like a great way to start a tour of L.A.”

“Well it is if I was showing him where I worked,” Lucifer interjected. “Unless you think I should show him a crime scene, which would be much more appropriate.”

“As much as I like having people around my desk and interrupting my morning,” Chloe started, spearing all three males with a look, “I do have things to do. Like the mountain of paperwork that I have to go through that piled up over the last week.”

“Decker!” A voice called out. “Another body just dropped!” A man stepped forward and deposited a file on her desk. “Figured you should take it since you’re not busy.” The man gave Lucifer and Gabriel a look, which Gabriel figured meant he was annoyed by their presence.

“On it.” Chloe glared at all three men as she picked up the file. She watched the other man walk away before she turned her attention back to Lucifer, Gabriel, and Dan.

“Oh, perfect!” Lucifer smiled as he reached to take the folder, but Chloe deftly pulled it out of his reach. “What’s on the docket today? Lover’s spat turned deadly? Shady gangsters dropping some poor sod into the ocean in cement shoes? This seems like a perfect chance to show Gabriel what I do.”

“He’s staying.” Chloe shot Lucifer a look as she opened the folder herself. “He’s not LAPD and he doesn’t belong at a crime scene. You might have clearance, but he doesn’t.”

“But we haven’t even discussed the case we’re working on!” Lucifer seemed to pout, which only caused Gabriel to stare at Lucifer in shock. Devil or not, but was he seriously acting like the world’s oldest toddler?

“Wait, what case?” Dan looked between the three, frowning. “Did something else happen?”

“Of course something happened! My brother here was stabbed to death and we need to find out who did it.” Lucifer wrapped an arm around Gabriel’s shoulders as Gabriel looked heavenward.

“He was stabbed to death.” Chloe’s deadpan was enough to make Gabriel’s estimation of her notch up a bit. “He looks pretty alive to me.”

“Well, he’s alright _now_ , but he nearly bled to death in my club last night.” Lucifer looked at Gabriel with a raised brow. “Well, come on. Show the detective the wound.”

Gabriel snorted. “I am _not_ stripping in the middle of a police station Luci.” He crossed his arms, wondering exactly about whether Lucifer was actually this much of a kid or not. “Besides, I’m fine. I don’t need anything investigated.”

“Well, what was the point of bringing you down here then?” Lucifer looked affronted. “The perpetrator needs to be punished!”

Chloe sighed and grabbed Lucifer by the arm. “Excuse us.” She dragged him away, leaving Gabriel and Dan standing there.

“Okay, is it just me or is Lucifer acting more like Lucifer than usual?” Dan looked toward Gabriel, frowning.

“Haven’t a clue, man.” To be honest, Gabriel wasn’t sure what to expect from the other angel. Sure, _his_ Lucifer was one of the biggest children in all of creation, but this was ridiculous. It was like this one seemed to think that his problems were bigger than everyone else’s. Which, okay, yeah, that was pretty much his Lucifer too, but still…

Dan sighed, dumping his pudding cup and spoon in a nearby trash can before he went to grab up his jacket. “Come on then.”

“Huh?”

Dan just gave him a look as he gestured toward where Chloe and Lucifer disappeared to. “No offence, but you’re his brother and if I know Lucifer, leaving him _here_ would lead to a disaster or something, and you have the same look.”

Gabriel almost protested, but then pointed toward Dan with an exasperated look. “Okay, fair. You got me there.” Then he looked at Dan curiously. “So where are we going?”

* * *

Chloe dragged Lucifer into the interrogation room, glad that there weren’t any suspects currently held in it and certainly glad that nothing was being videotaped right now. She then turned toward the man (devil!) and crossed her arms. “Okay, what the heck is going on here?”

“Well, it’s just what I said, Detective.” Lucifer frowned. “My brother was stabbed, and I wish to find the one responsible for them to be punished.”

“And you didn’t think to call the police or something, I dunno, when he was stabbed?” Chloe looked at Lucifer in disbelief. “That’s what normal people do, Lucifer.”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “Ah yes, and how would that conversation have gone, hm? ‘Hello, operator, yes, I have a winged person here who’s been stabbed. No, the wings are perfectly normal!’” Lucifer gave Chloe a look. “That conversation would have gone about as well as if I’d attended a ‘Come to Jesus’ meeting.”

Chloe blinked before shaking her head. Nope, she was pretty sure she heard the word wings. “He has wings?”

Lucifer looked upward in exasperation. “Of course angels have wings. All of us do.”

Chloe frowned. “Except you.”

“I cut mine off, yes, but they grew back sadly.” Lucifer shifted a bit like he was uncomfortable. “I haven’t been rid of them since. They’re like cockroaches.”

“Wow.” Score one more point for why Chloe needed time to process the fact that her partner was literally _the Devil_. She still was having trouble wrapping her mind around it, but hiding out at her house for a week while Dan watched Trixie apparently hadn’t been enough time. “So lemme get this straight. Someone stabbed your brother and left him for dead in Lux?”

“Here’s the kicker. He claims he’s not my brother and is from some alternate reality.” Lucifer shook his head. “Strange, really. The last time a rift opened to another reality was when I shoved my Mum into it.”

Okay. This was officially too strange for her. She held up a hand and shook her head. “We’ll try and figure it out later. Right now we have a case we need to get to.”

“Ah yes, the one you were just handed.” Lucifer rubbed his hands together, and Chloe had to remind herself that Lucifer wasn’t human and didn’t have the same ideas about why he shouldn’t look pleased by the prospect of a dead body. “Care to take a wager about whether it was a mob hit or lover’s spat?”

“Lucifer…” Chloe warned before she opened the door to leave the room.

The trip to the abandoned warehouse in San Pedro was filled with Lucifer speculating about the nature of the murder, and Chloe felt a headache growing. By the time they’d pulled up to the scene, he’d moved from the topic of the investigation to the possible suspects of his own investigation.

“-And I know that Gabriel believes that Michael stabbed him, but that’s impossible. Michael hasn’t left Heaven in millennia! Besides, he didn’t mistake me for him, which would be impossible considering  we’re twins.”

“Wait, you have a twin?” Chloe glanced over at Lucifer as they walked toward the scene. Dan looked like he was already talking to people while Ella was checking over the body.

“Yes, of course. We were born at the same time. I just happen to be much more charismatic and personable than he is.”

Chloe rolled her eyes, though she couldn’t stop the slight smile from her lips as she ducked under the police tape. Lucifer followed right behind her as she waved Dan over. “What have we got?”

Dan looked first from Chloe to Lucifer as he approached, looking like he was having problems trying to find the words. He shook his head and focused on Chloe instead, causing her to frown. “We have a white male in his late thirties, average size, with a gunshot wound. Also, I don’t think Lucifer should take this case.”

“What?” Lucifer looked toward Dan with an incredulous look. “Why not?”

“Lucifer, let me talk to Dan.” She laid a hand on his arm, directing his attention to her.

“Your brother’s over by my car. He hasn’t been let near the scene either.” Dan offered, and Chloe gave Dan a grateful look as Lucifer huffed in annoyance.

“Fine, but do tell me why I’m being barred from the case, all right?”

Lucifer passed through the tape again, and Chloe looked back toward Dan. “Okay, what’s going on?”

Dan stepped aside, letting Chloe get a good look at the corpse. “This.”

If Chloe hadn’t seen for herself that Gabriel was very much alive less than an hour ago, she would have demanded to know how Lucifer’s brother had been found shot. As it was, the body looked eerily similar to Gabriel, right down to the same hairstyle, hair color, and eye color. He wasn’t wearing the same clothes though, instead dressed in a pair of khakis, jacket, and button down. He was on his side, sprawled with limbs akimbo, and dried blood had pooled around him. The air reeked, causing Chloe to repress the urge to gag.

Ella, who was busy looking over the body, glanced up and spotted Chloe. She gestured her over, and Chloe moved forward, knowing Dan was right behind her. “What happened?”

“By my estimates based on rate of decomposition, he’s been dead about a week.” Ella stated, looking over and pointing to each piece of evidence. “There’s severe bloating and foaming around the mouth and nose consistent with the timeframe. However, from all appearances, this guy was shot in the back.” She winced. “I wonder what kind of enemies this guy had that would shoot a guy in the back though.”

Chloe glanced around. Who indeed? She thought back to Gabriel and Lucifer, not sure if either could answer that question, though she scanned to see exactly if she could figure out where the gunman was. “Any indication as to where the shooter was and what kind of firearm?”

“Pistol, about five feet away. We found casings right about here.” Ella walked over to where small white circles were drawn, indicating where the casings were found. “I think the perp snuck up behind him and shot him three times. Ballistics is going to take the casings as well as the bullet fragments to figure out exactly what caliber.”

Chloe looked toward Dan. “And you think it’d be a good idea if Lucifer wasn’t involved?”

“Wait, what’s wrong with Luce?” Ella stepped forward, then looked around for the flighty consultant. “Wait, does he know the vic?”

“That’s complicated.” Chloe looked toward Dan. “You go ahead and question who found the vic, and I’m going to get Lucifer and Gabriel.” And hopefully waylay a potentially pissed off Satan, but Chloe wasn’t going to say that to them.

She found them both where Dan said he’d left Gabriel, though it looked like Gabriel had started snacking on Twinkies. Where he got them, Chloe wasn’t going to ask, though apparently they had attracted the attention of one of the police on the scene. As she got closer, she could hear what the three were saying.

“Well, maybe later we can play good cop, dirty cop. Perhaps use those handcuffs you have.” Lucifer quipped, throwing a wink before he spotted Chloe. “Ah, and there’s our cue. Detective! Over here!”

“What on Earth are you doing?” Chloe looked between Lucifer and the retreating cop. “You know what, nevermind, I don’t want to know.”

“All I was doing was entertaining her while she was asking some questions.” Lucifer shoved his hands into his pockets. “Though she seemed curious to know how Gabriel here was up and about.”

“That’s what we need to talk to you about.” Chloe inclined her head toward the scene. “Come on, you need to look at this, and _don’t_ start looking for trouble.”

Lucifer shared a look with Gabriel before he followed, frowning. “What’s going on? Has this something to do with the fact that Detective Douche wouldn’t let me near the scene?”

“Where were you two last night?”

Gabriel finished off his Twinkie before he answered. “I was bleeding to death on his couch, and Lucifer had his therapist play doctor.”

“Linda?”

Lucifer nodded. “Well, I couldn’t very well patch him up myself.” Chloe ducked back under the tape as Lucifer paused. “What aren’t you saying?”

“I think you might know the victim.” Chloe moved toward where Ella was still examining the scene and gestured for the two angels to follow.

She knew Lucifer spotted the body when he froze and Gabriel wasn’t that far behind with a muttered, “Oh shit.” Lucifer started forward immediately, leaving Gabriel frozen behind him and Chloe scrambling to catch up.

He stopped near the body, close enough to examine it before he stood and turned toward Chloe. “Have you caught them yet?”

“Lucifer-“

Lucifer’s face twisted in anger. “Have you caught them yet?” He stabbed a finger down toward the body angrily. “That is my brother, Detective! This shouldn’t be possible! He wasn’t even in Los Angeles!”

“Lucifer.” She hadn’t realized that Gabriel had moved forward, his expression blank as he examined the body. He crouched down and let a hand hover a moment over the body before he retracted it with a grimace. Standing, he leveled a look that was as ancient as anything that she could imagine at his brother. “We need to make a call.”

Lucifer’s jaw tightened, but before he could do anything, Chloe interjected. “Lucifer, Gabriel, I know this is hard, but we need to get information on everything you know about your brother so we can help catch the person responsible.”

“Oh wow, are you Lucifer’s brother?” Ella stood from where she was examining the body and stripped off a glove to extend a hand to Gabriel as she looked between him and the body. “Ella Lopez. Are you the vic’s twin?”

Gabriel looked startled for a moment before he nodded, shaking her hand. “Gabriel Winchester. I um, I wasn’t expecting to see this when Detective Espinoza invited me to ride out with him.”

“Yeah, I can see how you wouldn’t expect it.” Chloe was unsurprised when Ella first hugged Gabriel and then a startled Lucifer. “Hey, we’ll be here to help you both out. No one has to deal with something like this alone. What was his name, anyway?”

“Jibra’il.” When both Chloe and Ella looked at Gabriel, he shrugged. “We have a _very_ religious dad.”

Lucifer carefully extracted himself from Ella before he glanced toward Chloe. “I believe we need to go down to the station to give information for the investigation? Otherwise I would indulge in this hugging session.”

“Got it.” Ella gave Lucifer a firm pat on the shoulder before indulging herself in an extra hug to Gabriel. She then turned back to the crime scene, studying it carefully while Chloe diverted the brothers toward her car. Dan, she knew, could handle getting statements from the witnesses.

Lucifer’s eyes narrowed but he allowed himself to be herded toward the car. When they reached it, he turned toward the detective with a scowl. “I don’t need to be treated with kid gloves, Detective. I am perfectly capable of handling myself in a situation.”

“In a situation? Lucifer, you looked like you were about to commit a murder.” Chloe glared.

“No, what I want is to hunt down the pustule responsible for this and make them regret it for the rest of their miserable existence.” Lucifer pulled out his phone, already beginning to dial.

“Luce, I hope you’re calling that Amena-something brother, because we need him down here.” Gabriel frowned, still looking slightly disturbed. Chloe was suddenly reminded that less than twelve hours ago, Gabriel had almost ended up in that same situation.

“No, I’m calling Maze. She can track the miscreant down for us and drag them back.” Lucifer finished jabbing at his phone and tapped his foot impatiently. “Why don’t you give him a prayer? I’m certain he’d come running if you did it.”

“And how do I do that again?” Chloe sputtered, but Gabriel ignored her. “I don’t know how to pray. All I ever had to do was think hard at a sibling and my message got through.”

“Well you need to figure that out quick! Between your stabbing and now this, I daresay that you need a way to contact someone quickly – Ah, Maze, just the demon I needed to talk to.”

Chloe glared, and she moved quickly, shoving Gabriel and Lucifer into the car while the both of them sputtered. Leveling a glare at the two of them, she gestured back toward the scene. “Look, I just found out about the fact that angels and God are real and oh yeah, I work with the Devil on cases, but right now, it seems like the problems with Heaven are trying to bleed into the regular world. That means that there’s a murder case that I was assigned that looks like your brother was murdered, but oh look, he’s still sitting here very much alive.” She pressed her hands to her temples, fighting off the sensation of a headache forming. “Someone needs to tell me how exactly all of that is possible, or if it’s just some normal person that got shot.”

Gabriel raised his hand, and Chloe felt exasperated as she gestured for him to speak. “One, you have a really good mom voice, like wow, and two, that’s a dead angel.”

“And you’d know this how?”

“I might not have all my powers right now, but I do have some of my senses.” Lucifer gave Gabriel an odd look, but the younger angel ignored him. “His wings. They might not have been visible, but there were like some sort of imprints left behind on the ground where he fell.”

Chloe blinked, confused, while Lucifer shook his head. “There were no sign of his wings, and they’d be rather visible if they were out.”

Chloe frowned, considering the fact that Lucifer had taken her on a wild goose chase to find some fake wings in a relics auction. “Wait, could the murderer have taken them off? I mean, Lucifer, you claimed you’d chopped yours off, so couldn’t the same have happened here and the imprints are all that’s left. Where were these imprints?”

Lucifer shook his head. “To chop my wings off requires hell-forged blades. Nothing else would affect them, and the only person that has access to those happens to be Maze.”

Her mind helpfully supplied the image of Maze with a devil tail and horns before she shook her head. Focus Chloe, she reminded herself. She didn’t need to think about how much her roommate, or probably former roommate, was a literal demon from hell.

She turned to look at Gabriel who was shaking his head at Lucifer. “Where I’m from, you can’t separate an angel’s wings from their grace. You destroy the grace, you destroy the wings, and then you get dead angels. Usually they leave actual physical evidence, shadows of wings burned into the surface behind them. This wasn’t physical though, it was like, I dunno, more like a ripple behind the guy. It kind of resembled wings.”

Lucifer’s eyebrows quirked upward. “Wait, can you see mine too?”

“Only if I squint really hard. My senses are really messed up right now.”

Chloe was suddenly reminded of something from early in their partnership. “Lucifer, doesn’t your back have scars from cutting your wings off?”

“Yes, and it was a bloody experience.” Lucifer frowned. “Well, that nixes the idea that the killer chopped them off. There would have been a mess of blood and feathers involved.”

Gabriel snapped, and both Lucifer and Chloe looked over to him questioningly. The younger angel looked sheepish as he shrugged. “I uh, I thought maybe I could freeze time for a second while we figured out what was going on. There’s an awful lot of people around to be talking about holy crap.”

 _“Wait, did Mr. Paranoid there just try to smite something?”_ Everyone looked over to the phone still in Lucifer’s hand which was still connected to his call to Maze.

“You put Maze on speakerphone?” Chloe rubbed her face. “Unbelievable…”

“Yes, well, we’re going to need her expertise if we’re going to track down my brother’s killer.” Lucifer looked completely unapologetic about it. “Did you catch all that Maze darling?”

 _“Yeah, I caught it.”_ Maze sounded annoyed. _“Just text me the address where the murder happened and I’ll see if I can track the person down.”_

“On it.”

Lucifer hung up and started texting while Chloe turned back to Gabriel. “Jibra’il? Really?”

“One, that is my name in Islam, and two, even if someone got curious as to looking up the meaning, it just means that Dad was really into the whole religion thing and decided to name twin kids after the same archangel, just different aspects.” Gabriel shrugged. “I mean, it made sense.”

“It kind of helps with one other thing too.” Chloe glanced toward Lucifer. “People already think you’re kind of nuts with the whole Lucifer thing, but if it’s because your dad was really religious and raised you that way, then they’d suspect that’s where it all came from.”

“Now see?” Gabriel grinned and slapped Lucifer on the shoulder. “Not even been here a day, and I’m helping out.”

* * *

The fact that he found himself back at the station didn’t surprise Gabriel in the slightest. Neither did the fact that Lucifer had apparently disappeared with that Decker chick. What surprised him was that Espinoza had apparently taken the lead in questioning Gabriel about his ‘twin’s’ murder.  Dan had sat Gabriel in the interrogation room to ask questions, and Gabriel had just propped his feet up on the table and answered as much as he could without giving too much away.

“So you have no idea if Jibra’il had any enemies.” Dan sat back, frowning as he studied Gabriel.

“Nope. Jibby didn’t tell me anything about stuff like that. He was too busy working with Dad I guess to tell me anything.” Gabriel shrugged. “We’re kinda estranged. Haven’t seen each other in a long time.”

Dan looked surprised. “You haven’t talked to your own twin in years? Why’d you two become so distant?”

Gabriel shrugged. “I guess we had different ideas about what family meant. I mean, Lucifer fought with Dad and our brothers a lot, and I didn’t want to see it so I left home. Jibra’il stayed.” He was keeping it as close to the truth as he could without revealing anything. Someone really ought to give him an Emmy for his performance. “I knew that he still worked with Dad, being his messenger and everything, but the person that probably knows more about it all would be Ames.”

“Amenadiel?” Dan blinked. “Well, if he’s been in more recent, we’ll look into it.” He then looked curious. “What about the purported stabbing? You and Lucifer seemed to believe that you were attacked. Do you think they’re related?”

Gabriel hadn’t thought of that. To be honest, he didn’t think that the perpetrator and Michael were the same. Especially since both happened in different realities. “I really doubt that. I know who stabbed me, and I doubt that he’s in L.A.”

“Care to elaborate on that?”

This was why Gabriel wished that Lucifer hadn’t said anything. His fingers twitched, but he refused to let them go anywhere near his chest. Instead, he gave Dan a smirk. “Honestly? I don’t think you’d believe me.”

Dan frowned. “Why is that?”

“Trust me, it’s really out there.”

The detective crossed his arms. “Try me.”

Gabriel snorted. “Well, you asked for it. I was stabbed by my brother, but instead of dying in a bright ball of light, I somehow ended up in the bathroom of Lux with giant wings coming out of my back. I managed to tuck those away and stumble downstairs where I ran into Luci.”

Dan stared for a moment. “Um…”

“Hey, you asked for it.” Gabriel shrugged. “I told ya you wouldn’t believe it.”

Dan looked exasperated. “Gabriel, this is a serious investigation. If the crimes are related, we could find both your brother’s killer and the person responsible for your attack and bring them to justice.”

“Except they’re not. Trust me.” Gabriel sighed, leaning forward to rub his face with his hands. “I am taking this seriously, but I seriously doubt that Michael had anything to do with Jibra’il’s death.”

“Michael? You have a brother named Michael?”

Gabriel cocked an eyebrow and smirked. “Didn’t I mention before that Dad is _really_ religious? Because he is. _Really_ religious.”

“Gabriel, I don’t think you understand. This was a violent crime committed against you.” Dan sighed. “Whether you wanted to press charges or not, the fact is it happened and you’re not denying it. We have to follow up on cases like that.”

And this was why Gabriel was annoyed by the fact that his grace was so depleted. If it wasn’t, he wouldn’t have the wound anymore. Well, except he was stabbed by an archangel’s blade. That had to take more time to heal. Why wasn’t he dead, anyway?

Dan did give him an out, even if he didn’t realize it, and Gabriel could almost hear Lucifer’s protests as he opened his mouth. “Well now I am. Denying it. It never happened.”

“Oh my God, you’re being as bad as Lucifer,” Dan groaned. “Were you stabbed last night?”

Gabriel bit back a retort that if his Dad really had anything to do with it, he never would have been stabbed. Instead, he gave the detective his best grin and crossed his arms, still mindful of his midsection. “No, I was not stabbed last night.”

Dan gave Gabriel a look as he seemed to think before he stood. “All right, fine. I get it.” He started gathering the papers in front of him before he reached for a pen. His hand knocked clumsily against it and it skittered across and over the edge of the table, right next to Gabriel. “Uh, can you get that for me?”

Oh, that was dirty. Gabriel gave the detective the dirtiest glare he could while he didn’t move a muscle to reach for the pen. “Nope.”

“No you won’t, or no you can’t?” Dan gave him a challenging look and Gabriel gritted his teeth together. Dangit.

“I won’t.” Gabriel started trying to stare the detective down. Wow, way to go from an okay guy to a complete asshole.

“Now see, here’s the thing. I know Lucifer, and I know one thing he hates more than anything.” Dan gave the pen a glance and looked back toward Gabriel. “He hates lying. He’s a jerk, he cooks up crazy stories about his family and everything, but he doesn’t lie. Not to Chloe. If he says you were stabbed, then you were.” He then gave Gabriel a triumphant look. “Now, if you weren’t stabbed, you’d have no problem picking that pen up.”

Gabriel glared some more, aware he was pretty much trapped. He then very deliberately reached down to grab the pen. However, a sharp pain shot through his midsection and he toppled sideways out of the chair, clutching at the wound. “Shit!”

Dan was already around the table and looking Gabriel over. “You could have just said you were stabbed.”

“Yeah, well, I’m a stubborn bastard that way.” Gabriel hissed, trying to raise himself up off the floor and failing. “Besides, you could have gotten your own damn pen.”

“Got you to admit it, though.” Dan eased Gabriel up and leaned him against the table. “Lemme take a look.”

“Considering you went through all that trouble to find out I was stabbed, sure, why not?” Gabriel sighed and closed his eyes as he felt Dan open his shirt and pull away the bandage. A hiss from Dan was all he needed to confirm it looked pretty bad. “So what’s the verdict, doc?”

“Well, I’m not a doctor, but I’m pretty sure you should have died from this.” Gabriel opened his eyes a crack to see Dan peering at the stab wound. “It looks like it’s been treated, but we still need to document it.”

“Yeah, sure, document away.”

Dan ended up taking him to the local hospital, where Gabriel had to endure an exam to make sure that the stitches were properly placed (they were) and that the wound hadn’t penetrated anything major. Lucifer had been notified that Lux had become a crime scene (which had happened before, who knew?) and that his ‘brother’ was being checked over to see the extent of the injuries he’d received. The doctors had been baffled as to the extent of the injury and how Gabriel had managed to walk away from it. Gabriel didn’t tell them that he was divine, and instead let them believe that he’d been really lucky. Pictures were taken, and by the end of it, Gabriel felt much like an angelic pincushion. The only thing he could think was that he was glad that it was over when they finally released him.

Dan had ended up staying with him so that he had a ride back to the station. He’d ended up asking him more questions about what happened. Gabriel gave a description about the vessel that Michael had used, hoping that there wasn’t some guy that looked just like that in the current reality he found himself in. Nevertheless, the detective told him that they’d look into the stabbing and whether or not it was connected to his ‘twin’s’ murder.

They exited the room with Dan heading over to the nurse’s station to get any last-minute information and Gabriel stretching as much as his wound would let him. He still had yet to contact that Amenadiel guy, and he wondered how different the first-born angel of this world was different from his own oldest brother. Letting his arms drop to the sides, he sighed, wondering exactly how he was supposed to do this when a slight throbbing in his head started coupled with whispers. Grinding his teeth together, he pressed the heels of his hands against his temples and closed his eyes tightly. “Son of a-“

_Remiel’s been tasked with cleaning up the mess in the courtyard-_

_Oh please, like you have any idea where souls are supposed to go-_

_Father’s been awfully quiet lately-_

_Is there still no word from-_

_Amenadiel, you had better get your feathery arse-_

_Why isn’t he-_

_Gabriel-_

_Is he-_

“Gabriel!”

Gabriel’s eyes snapped open with a gasp and he found himself staring at the floor. Curiously, there seemed to be some spots of red on it, and confused, he reached a finger down to check. Another spot of red appeared, this time on his hand, when he realized that it was blood and it was coming from _him_. A hand found his shoulder and his head shot up, the sick feeling returning with a vengeance. That’s when he realized that he apparently had drawn a crowd and Espinoza was right beside him, holding out a tissue as he knelt. That led to the realization that _Gabriel_ was also on his knees. He spied Chloe and Lucifer nearby, Chloe apparently holding someone back as Lucifer had his hands together like he was…

Praying. Oh. That’s what Lucifer meant when he said he had to pray to Amenadiel. Vaguely he recalled hearing his voice amongst the cacophony in his head, and he took a shaky breath as he took the tissue from Dan.

Bringing it to his face, he started wiping at it, finding that his nose was bleeding and pinching it to stop the flow. Gabriel eyed Dan as he did so, wincing as he realized that Dan must have seen what happened and rushed to check on him. “Um, thanks. I’m fine now, you can let go of… me…”

Dan didn’t seem to even notice that Gabriel had taken the tissue, nor had he even blinked. Gabriel rolled his eyes as he realized that time must have frozen. “Oh great, nice to see my powers are on a time delay.”

“You aren’t doing this. I am.” Gabriel glanced to his other side to spot some tall, bald black man with frigging _wings_ standing in a set of robes. “Hello Gabriel. It’s been a while.”

“I’d say that it has been, except we’ve never met before.” Gabriel’s eyes narrowed as he stood carefully, ducking out of Dan’s hand.

“Amenadiel, this is the house guest I was telling you about.” Lucifer strode forward as he gestured. “Gabriel, this is my rather obnoxious brother Amenadiel. Amenadiel, meet Gabriel, supposedly of another reality.”

“I’d say it’s nice to know you, but right now my head feels like someone took a jackhammer to it.” Gabriel winced, taking the tissue away to examine it before putting it back to his nose.

“I can imagine.” Amenadiel glanced over Gabriel’s shoulder. “Do your wings always come out when this happens?”

Gabriel glanced behind himself and groaned. There they were, sitting as innocently as they could, folded against his back. He concentrated on forcing them back, rolling his eyes as he did so. “So you’re Amenadiel. I take it you’re gonna play babysitter to me?”

“Actually I came down because Luci asked me to.” Amenadiel looked toward Lucifer. “You said something about problems?”

“Yes I did.” Lucifer gestured toward the humans surrounding them. “It appears I found our brother, brother. He’s currently being brought to the coroner’s office for an autopsy.”

“What?”

“The detective was put on a case to investigate a murder. Apparently Gabriel was shot to death and left in some filthy warehouse.” Lucifer’s eyes trailed over to Gabriel. “Right now this Gabriel is claiming that ours is his twin brother named Jibra’il.”

Amenadiel groaned. “Let me guess, you want me to go and retrieve his body?”

“Not right now, no.” Lucifer stated, shoving his hands in his pockets. “The humans would find it suspicious if their corpse suddenly vanished on them.”

“So we wait for them to do the autopsy and then make the body disappear?”

“Along with all samples they might take, yes.” Lucifer glanced back toward Chloe. “The detective might not like the idea of evidence disappearing, but right now we don’t exactly have an option.”

Amenadiel nodded before turning toward Gabriel. “What about you? Do I take you back to the Silver City?”

“Nu uh.” Gabriel shook his head. “I haven’t been back to Heaven in millennia. Not going to go back to someone else’s Heaven.”

“You… haven’t been in Heaven for millennia?” Amenadiel stared, mouth agape, at Gabriel. “Why?”

Gabriel huffed. “Can we just say that it’s a long story?”

“But-“

“Brother, if Gabriel doesn’t want to go to Heaven, I’d say he has the right to say no, don’t you?” Lucifer smirked. “I mean, you wouldn’t want to see another rebellion because you dragged him back against his will.”

Amenadiel glared at Lucifer. “If I get orders to bring him back, I will.”

“Yo, person you’re arguing about right here fellas.” Gabriel fixed a hard look at both of the other angels. “Besides, I’ve got my own problem right now.”

“Ah yes, being used by Dad as an angelic hot spot would put a crimp in anyone’s day, wouldn’t it?” Lucifer gestured toward Gabriel as he stared at Amenadiel. “So, if you would be so kind as to make it so that he doesn’t have episodes of debilitating pain…”

“Debilitating pain? Lucifer, he shouldn’t have _any_ pain.” Amenadiel gave Lucifer an incredulous look before turning toward Gabriel. “You’re the Messenger.”

“Something must be broken then since I keep ending up getting hit with headaches and nosebleeds.” Gabriel snorted. He removed the tissue from his nose, glad to see that the blood had finally stopped. “I dunno how your Gabe managed it, but they keep knocking me on my butt.”

Amenadiel shook his head. “You don’t understand. Unless Father decided to gift it to someone else, if you weren’t our Gabriel, you shouldn’t be getting any of this.”

Gabriel narrowed his eyes. “So what you’re saying is that supposedly my entire existence, every memory, is wrong?”

“I wouldn’t say wrong-“

“Oh come now,” Lucifer stated, strolling forward to stand between the two.  “Are you going to tell me that dear old Dad somehow managed to do a reboot on Gabriel but give him the wrong operating system? Especially one where you don’t exist, I’m completely evil, and Michael tried to murder him? I hate to say it brother, but you and I both know Father doesn’t work that way.”

“Lucifer, you were just complaining that Father took away your devil face and gave you back your wings! How would you understand the way our Father works if you keep blaming him for your problems?”

“Can I say something?” Gabriel began, managing to put his wings away again and looking from one brother to the other. “You two can keep arguing all you want, but it doesn’t change the problem. You say that your Dad did this to me. Why? Why on Earth would He make me forget my entire existence and replace it with another one?” Gabriel snorted. “Usually the best explanation is the simplest one. You know, the KISS rule?”

Amenadiel frowned. “Kiss rule?”

“That would be Keep It Simple, Stupid.” Lucifer looked between the two again. “So you’ll help with removing the issues down here?”

“I’ll help.” Amenadiel looked exasperated. He glanced toward Gabriel and gestured at Espinoza. “You might want to…”

“Gotcha.” Gabriel went back to the position he was in before time stopped but looked at Amenadiel curiously. “Your Dad’s still in Heaven, right?”

Amenadiel nodded. “He is.”

“Any way He can get me back to where I belong?”

Amenadiel shook his head. “I don’t know. You’d have to ask Him yourself.”

“Wonderful.” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “All right, let’s get this show on the road.”

* * *

Mazikeen frowned as she dialed Lucifer’s number, looking first to the building where Gabriel’s body had been and then to the body at her feet. This whole case was weird, she decided. Who went around killing angels? If that wasn’t enough, the second body seemed weird too.

_“Ah, hello Maze. How’s the hunt going?”_

Maze kicked at the body again, her face twisted in annoyance. “There’s a second body here. Right near the water. Hidden pretty well, too.”

_“And this is pertinent because…?”_

“Found a gun on him.” Maze looked at the murder weapon with narrowed eyes. “Not sure if it’s the same one, but it looks like it could be. Also, freakiest thing about this body is how he died.”

She could hear Lucifer’s curiosity build as he hummed to himself. _“And what would be so interesting about how he died?”_

“Broken neck.” Maze crouched down to take another look, making sure she didn’t touch the body at all. “Thing is, no marks around his neck. It’s like his neck broke on its own.”

 _“That is interesting.”_ Lucifer paused, and Maze could hear him thinking. _“I’ll call the detective then. You get ahold of the police so that they can take care of the corpse.”_

“There’s one other problem.” Maze stood back up and brushed her pants off with one hand.

_“Just one?”_

“Oh yeah.” She paced around, trying to see if she could find something despite having looked through the area carefully. “Trail went cold. Whatever happened to this meatbag left nothing for me to follow.”

 _“Well, that can’t be right.”_ Lucifer sounded annoyed. _“There has to be something to follow this piece of garbage by. Are you sure that you’ve searched the whole area? Perhaps there’s other evidence.”_

“Well, if there is, it’s not here.” Maze looked back toward the body, her expression hardening. “Whatever killed this guy made sure there was nothing to follow, and the only way I can figure that makes sense is if it’s not from around here.”


	3. His Own Personal Jack the Ripper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't replied to anyone much in the comments. I've been busy and haven't had much time to work on the next chapter. However, I do have some scenes for later in the story written out, so there's that. Again, a big thank you to those that commented and gave this fic kudos. You guys rock!
> 
> Edit because I am an idiot that keeps forgetting this: You can contact me on Tumblr if you want at charbonnes-writing-sanctuary where I can pretty much answer whatever, or if you just wanna follow the stuff I post there! I promise I won't bite!

Chloe couldn’t believe she was back near the same crime scene as earlier that day, except that Maze had called in to report she’d found another body. One that she hadn’t caused. So far, nothing that anyone could see was pointing toward anything but foul play. The gun they’d found had already been bagged and sent to Ballistics to be examined, but the body was causing its own brand of confusion.

“I just can’t explain it.” Ella walked around the body to examine the head carefully. “No sign of trauma, no marks to suggest anyone tried to twist this guy’s head off. It’s like he snapped his own neck.”

“You’re sure?” Chloe looked toward Lucifer, who was even now talking to Maze. She’d called it in, but had claimed that there was no trail to follow, and considering that she was the best bounty hunter on payroll, that had to be impossible. “This can’t be something natural right?” Because Chloe and natural had parted ways years ago the minute she’d met Lucifer.

Ella shook her head. “Look, normally the amount of force needed to snap someone’s neck would be evident around the site.” She pointed toward the victim’s neck. “Like bruising around his spine, evidence he was in a chokehold across his throat, or even bruising on his face if someone had grabbed his head to do it, but there’s a big fat load of nada. It’s like it just randomly snapped.”

Chloe sat back on her heels, hands clasped in front of her as she tried to picture what happened. Maze had given her statement, and considering how long ago the area had been searched and the victim had been dead, it meant that she hadn’t had time to kill the man and leave it. The body was almost a week old, and Ella had already said that the body hadn’t been dumped here, which meant that it had to have happened not long after the shooting.

“Whoa, here’s something different.” Ella was back to crouching down and examining the area around the body’s head.

“What’s different?”

Ella took out a tool to scrape around the area of the guy’s face. “I’m not sure, but there’s some kind of yellow residue on the ground here.” Placing the sample into a bag, she looked around the body carefully. “I don’t see any other yellow, which means it might have been something he ingested?”

Chloe studied the ground Ella was working on. “But that doesn’t explain the broken neck.”

“No it doesn’t,” Ella agreed, “but if it was some sort of drug, then maybe the guy had a seizure so bad that he snapped his own neck? Only way we’ll know if he was on something is a tox screen.”

“Let me know what comes up.” Chloe was already standing and watching Lucifer and Maze. She suspected that it had everything to do with Gabriel, but if she couldn’t explain it, then Lucifer might know something on the supernatural side of things. “I’m going to talk to Maze again and see if she can remember any details.”

“I’ve gotta say,” Ella started, looking at the body and shaking her head, “This whole thing? Totally messed up. I mean, if this is the same guy that murdered Lucifer’s brother, then why did he die right after him?”

“I don’t know.” Chloe moved past Ella, already watching as Maze walked away and Lucifer turned to regard the body. She could tell he was thinking something over, but what, Chloe couldn’t even hazard a guess. “Did she say anything else about what she found?”

Lucifer shook his head. “No. Maze is especially skilled, and there’s nothing that could have stopped her from her job. That something managed to leave no trace of where they went, that’s disturbing. However, she did mention that whatever killed that cretin possibly wasn’t from around here.”

Chloe frowned. “Wasn’t from around here? You mean like…” She didn’t want to say it. Not because she was afraid or anything, only because part of her didn’t want to believe it. “Like your kind of around here?”

Lucifer shook his head. “No. Angels can’t kill humans. It’s Dad’s rule.”

“But-“ Her mouth shut with a snap as she avoided saying what she already figured. That Lucifer had killed Pierce. However, saying that was likely to get Lucifer into a lot of trouble, and as nobody had an explanation for how Pierce had died exactly, everyone was in the dark as to what really happened a week ago. “Could it have been…?” She gestured in the direction Maze went, completely unsure what she could say where Maze was concerned and not wanting it spread around.

“You mean Maze? She has an alibi for her whereabouts, and any other demon would need to be brought up by me.” Lucifer frowned. “No one else can command them.”

“Oh.” Well, that took off the table the idea of either Heaven or Hell. Also, it hadn’t really occurred to Chloe that Lucifer actually ruled Hell. Not quite. Shaking her head, she crossed her arms. “Well, there’s nothing that we can find, at least nothing concrete. Ella’s got some samples for the lab, so maybe she’ll be able to get information from that.”

Lucifer nodded, seemingly distracted. “Perhaps.”

Chloe noticed it immediately. “What?”

“It’s just a theory Detective. One I need to find out about.”

“And this theory is?”

“I need to ask someone how demons work in his world.”

* * *

Linda sat staring at her current company. Sure, she said she would help Lucifer with his brother, but she didn’t mean it like she was going to play babysitter. Which, technically, that’s why Lucifer dropped Gabriel off, like he needed someone to watch his younger brother. Gabriel had taken it in stride well enough when Lucifer came by with him. That is, up until Lucifer left. Gabriel had snorted like a teenager and proceeded to plop down on her couch, completely heedless of the fact that he might have been proving Lucifer’s point for him about Gabriel’s maturity level.

“You know, I’m probably a few millennia older than him.”

Linda looked back down at her desk, busy with a patient file. “Uh huh.”

“I mean, when I was created, I had to fight against a literal goddess. Before the beginning of time.” Gabriel snorted. “The Big Bang hadn’t even happened yet because Dad kept trying to create and The Darkness just kept destroying whatever He made.”

Linda blinked and looked up. Gabriel had somehow gotten ahold of a Snickers and was munching away on it, gesturing with the bar of candy any time he wanted to make a point. “But like, did anyone actually try and thank us for it? Oh no. Lucifer got thrown into the Cage, Rafael and Michael went uber-militant, and Dad just…” Gabriel mimicked an explosion with his hands. “Poof. Gone. I mean, is it any wonder why I ran away?”

Linda frowned. Okay, this was a completely different scenario from what Lucifer described as the beginning of the universe. Maybe Gabriel’s statement about not being from this reality had some weight. “And why did you run away?”

Gabriel canted his head to the side and locked gazes with her. “Because all anyone was doing was fighting. Like, imagine Thanksgiving dinner, and your Uncle Larry showed up. Only, Uncle Larry was hopped up on drugs and everyone argued with him about how he was hopped up on drugs.”

Linda had a feeling that this ‘Uncle Larry’ was basically Lucifer, but she didn’t say that. “No one tried to help this Uncle Larry?”

Gabriel snorted. “Can’t help someone that doesn’t want help. Isn’t that one of the things you’re taught in medical school?”

“Well, yes,” Linda began, “but the first thing you always should do is extend a hand to help. If they don’t take it, then you can’t force it on them. That still doesn’t negate the fact that you have to offer the help.”

“Yeah, but Luci never wanted the help. He just complained about how he was wronged and that he was always right.” Gabriel took another bite of the candy bar and pointed it at her. “He didn’t even care about humanity. Dad’s creation. He wanted to tear it all down.”

“And you think he was wrong to do so.” It wasn’t a question. It was a statement that Linda was sure was correct.

Gabriel nodded firmly. “Yeah. He wanted to show Dad how flawed humans were and kept corrupting them. I mean, he tortured Lillith into becoming a demon, gave the Mark to Cain, seduced Adam and Eve into eating the forbidden fruit, and on and on. It’s no wonder Dad had Michael cast him into the Cage. I’m just shocked that He waited so long to do it.”

Linda blinked in surprise. Yeah, different Lucifer then. She thought about the situation for a moment before she spoke again. “And who are you most mad at? Lucifer for doing those things, God for disappearing, or your brothers for doing what they did?”

Gabriel shrugged. “Honestly? All of them. I just wanted the fighting to stop.”

Linda rose an eyebrow. “Do you think you might be projecting any of this onto the Lucifer here?”

Gabriel actually laughed at that. “Oh no. Luci here? He’s a big kid. Like, he’s eleven and throwing tantrums, but he’s not malicious.”

“Huh.” Linda sat back, surprised. “You’re remarkably adjusted enough to recognize that.”

Gabriel waggled his eyebrows. “I’m remarkable in a lot of other ways too.”

Linda actually huffed a laugh. “Oh wow. Wow. That’s _three_ angels now that have hit on me.” She frowned and looked down at herself. “Is there something special about me that I don’t know about?”

Gabriel looked at her appraisingly. “I don’t think so, but I could be wrong. I’m just suffering from the fact that the last time I tried to do anything I suffered from coitus interruptus.”

Linda spread her hands out on the desk and shook her head. “Well, I can tell you right now that while I appreciate the offer, I am definitely not interested.”

Gabriel shrugged. “Fair enough.” He then sat back for a moment before he looked at Linda again, pointing his candy bar in her direction. “Oh, I see what you did. Impromptu therapy session. Always knew psychiatrists were sneaky like that.”

“Who me?” Linda placed a hand on her chest and shook her head. “No. Actually I was curious, and considering that you have a different perspective on an alternate Lucifer, it might help me help the Lucifer here.”

Gabriel finished off his candy bar and balled up the wrapper. “Well, did you find what you needed?”

Linda grimaced. “Yes and no. Yes, because you gave me a perspective about how bad Lucifer could have been, and no, because his issues are much different.”

“Like comparing apples to oranges.” Gabriel nodded. “I can tell you, I would never confuse my Lucifer with yours. Completely different angels.”

Linda gestured to Gabriel. “Well, what about you? How are you adjusting since being here?”

Gabriel pointed at her. “You’re psychoanalyzing me.”

“Guilty.” Linda brushed a piece of hair out of her face. “Here’s the thing though. I know nothing about you, and you know very little about here. I figure if nothing else it could be an exchange of information, and maybe help you adjust better.”

Gabriel frowned. “I’m not staying here, though. As soon as I can find a way to make a portal back to my world, I’m going back.”

Linda nodded. “Fair enough. Well, think about it, okay?” She didn’t say the real reason she had offered to listen to him. Something told her that while he had stated his major grievances against his family, there was a lot there that he hadn’t said. Like how he had specifically positioned himself to watch the door, or the somewhat tense way he held himself, almost like he expected something to happen and was ready to act. It suggested something had happened to him, and Linda wasn’t sure what it was, but only that it was still affecting the angel.

Gabriel in the meantime just leaned back, looking up at the ceiling as Linda worked. She could hear him sigh every couple of minutes, and when she looked up, he’d be jiggling his leg up and down impatiently. It was around the fifteen minute mark that Gabriel stood up and walked over to lean against the door jam. Another few minutes passed before Gabriel spoke up. “Oh, uh, good job on the stitches by the way.”

“Huh?”

Gabriel shrugged. “The doctors at the hospital said that you’d done a good job. Real professional work. Asked me where I got them.”

Linda gaped. “And did you say where you got them?”

“Nope!” Gabriel sounded way too cheerful for someone that had recently been stabbed and stitched back together. “Didn’t say a word Doc. Your secret’s safe with me.”

“Why were you at the hospital?” Linda was stuck on that point. Lucifer had stated that Gabriel couldn’t go to one since he was an angel. Why did that change?

Gabriel huffed, exasperated. “One of the detectives found out I’d been stabbed, so he made me go to get it documented. Don’t worry, they didn’t take any samples. They just asked a bunch of questions and took pictures.”

Linda blinked. “Oh. Good to know.”

Gabriel paced, walking the length of the room before turning around to retrace his steps. Linda merely watched for a moment before returning to her own files. Before long she heard a huff and the sound of Gabriel flopping back on her couch. A snap followed, causing Linda to look back toward Gabriel who was frowning again. “Problems?”

“One, how in the world aren’t you bored right now? I’m going stir-crazy looking at the same four walls.” Gabriel scowled, gesturing around. “Two, I’m trying to figure out why my powers aren’t working. I should be able to do something, make stuff appear, but nothing. It doesn’t make sense.”

Linda pushed a piece of her hair out of her face. “Well, I don’t go stir-crazy because I usually have work to do. Also, I don’t know about divine abilities, but perhaps yours are recharging?”

Gabriel looked like he might be considering something before he stood up again. “I think you might be right.”

“I am?” Linda was confused.

“I don’t have anything to do, work-related or whatever.” Gabriel frowned. “What I need is to find something to do.”

Linda frowned. “I’m not following. Are you talking about getting a job?”

Gabriel shook his head and shrugged. Golden brown wings sprouted from his back, causing Linda to stare. “I’m going to go practice my flying. After that, I’ll see about curing my boredom.”

Linda stood. “Wait, Gabriel—“ She just started to come from around her desk when he gave two hearty flaps before flying upward. Then she blinked, and the angel was gone, scattering everything on her desk. She stood awkwardly in place as she finished, “at least let your brother know where you’re going.”

* * *

Gabriel stumbled as he appeared on the roof, grimacing. That was the least graceful landing he’d ever had, and that included the time he’d barely managed to fly away from the Winchester’s bunker. However, he attributed it less to being low on juice and more on his actual wings being physical. He glared back at them for a moment, wishing for a moment that they weren’t so in the way before he focused on the edge of the roof.

Before becoming the Trickster, he’d seen how birds learned to fly. He’d watched them carefully, always eager to learn about his Father’s work and what He had created. Even though God had asked for some input from the other angels and Gabriel’s rather interesting take on some creatures (they always seemed to end up in Australia for some reason), birds had always held something of a special place for him. As far as Gabriel was concerned, they were birds of a feather, and while avians had different wings than his own (at the time), they both held the distinct pleasure of flight.

While the stab wound in his gut hadn’t healed yet, Gabriel was more than eager to fly. He’d been cooped up in one place for far too long, and the archangel was desperate for a change in scenery. Between the fact that he’d spent too long in cars traveling from point A to point B and the hospital and the station and Lux, he felt rather like a bug under a microscope. Everyone had been keeping an eye on him and refusing to let him out of their sight. The fact that Gabriel had waited this long to break away was honestly a testament to his patience. Seriously, he deserved a medal or something.

Now, standing on the roof of a building at least three stories high wasn’t a great way to start off his adventures in corporeal winged flight. He knew he’d have to go somewhere higher to get real practice. Problem was, there weren’t any in the immediate vicinity to jump from. He rolled his eyes heavenward as if to say ‘Gee Dad, you had to put me in timeout, huh?’ He strolled toward the edge of the roof, glancing down and gauging the distance. It wasn’t great, but it should be enough to get the lift he needed.

He walked back to about the middle of the roof, clapped his hands together and rubbed them, and planted his feet firmly while leaning forward. He then took off in a dash, running straight for the edge and taking a leap off. His wings snapped open immediately, catching the air and he grinned as he managed to avoid splattering on the ground by near inches. Angling his wings, he swooped upward and whooped as he managed to do a barrel roll.

He forgot about the fact that he wasn’t in his own world for a bit, enjoying the feel of air beneath his wings and the freedom that came from soaring. He banked sharply, then noticed the quiet that had descended. He alighted on a six story building, looking around and noticing that everything had stopped. Closing his eyes, he counted to five mentally and then turned around. “You know, I was doing just fine on my own.”

Amenadiel merely rose a brow as he looked across the roof before settling his gaze back toward Gabriel. “Indeed you were, but you seemed to forget the fact that mortals aren’t supposed to witness the divine.” The other angel looked patient as he strode forward, stopping a few feet from Gabriel. “I am glad to see that whatever had happened to you hadn’t caused you to truly Fall.”

Gabriel sighed. “Lemme guess. Luci found out I broke out of Alcatraz and sent you to get me.”

Amenadiel shook his head. “Actually, I just came to check up on you and found you on that roof. It’s a good thing I did, because I’m pretty sure there were a dozen humans that could have seen your flying.”

“I’m used to being invisible when I fly.” Sure, Gabriel might have been sounding like a giant kid, but seriously? It was getting aggravating being reminded that the rules he was used to weren’t in effect here. “Why in the world would God make a rule about humans not seeing the divine and yet make it so that angels couldn’t go about their business without being seen? That seems like poor planning if you ask me.”

“I believe it has more to do with self-restraint rather than poor planning.” Amenadiel walked toward the edge of the roof and looked down. “After all, He tests everyone, human and angel alike. It’s whether we pass such tests that determine whether we’re following His plan.”

Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, His ‘plan’.” Gabriel made air quotes with his fingers and snorted. “Wanna know what happened the last time I saw ‘His plan’ in action? All of my siblings rearing to go for a showdown that would have ended the world. Hard pass.”

Amenadiel’s eyes narrowed. “You sound like Lucifer.”

Gabriel blinked. “How do I sound like your brother?”

The other angel sighed in exasperation. “Lucifer Fell because he desired free will. Are you to tell me that Father was wrong in doing that?”

Gabriel shrugged, his wings rising and falling with the gesture. “I’m not saying He was right or wrong. I wouldn’t know what He was thinking. All I know is that I don’t belong here.”

“And yet here you are.” Amenadiel pressed his lips together before speaking again. “Whether you want to admit it or not, there has to be a reason why you’re here.”

“And if there is no reason?” Gabriel gave Amenadiel a frank look. “I don’t know about you, but just because you think it’s providence, doesn’t mean it is. I mean, I know a couple of boneheads that fought against Dad’s plan and won. You can’t tell me that’s what He wanted.”

“I don’t know what Father wants.” Amenadiel crossed his arms, glaring. “What I do know is that I don’t question what He asks of me.”

“Okay then, got it.” Gabriel made the okay gesture with his hand. “You know, you and Michael would get along great.”

Amenadiel frowned. “Michael and I get along well enough.”

Gabriel sighed and shook his head. “Eh, forget it. I understand God decided angels shouldn’t be seen by humans. Poor planning on His part regarding the whole being seen thing, but I get it. Question is, if all this is part of His plan, then why am I here?”

“I couldn’t even begin to answer that question.” Amenadiel settled himself down on the edge of the roof, tucking his wings away and Gabriel could hear time resuming again. “I guess if we can’t answer that question, then a better one would be ‘what are you going to do?’”

Gabriel blinked. “What do you mean, what am I going to do?”

“If our Father brought you here but doesn’t reveal why, then what are you going to do?” Amenadiel gestured to the city below. “You can’t just go running off. There’s a reason why you were always at His side unless messages needed to be delivered.”

“You don’t think I can take care of myself.” Gabriel stared for a moment at the other angel. “You legitimately think that I am incapable of looking after myself on my own.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“No, but it’s what you think.” Gabriel ran a hand though his hair, turning around before whipping back to stare Amenadiel down. “What was your Gabriel like, really? Was he naïve? Did he just avoid conflict and stuck right next to your Dad? Did you guys ever let him do anything?”

Amenadiel’s face darkened. “He knew how to deal with problems by himself.”

“Did he really?” Gabriel gave Amenadiel a disbelieving look. “Because no offence, but I’ve been fighting longer than the universe has existed. Big Bang? I watched it happen. You tell me, have you ever fought a literal Goddess? ‘Cause I have, and lemme tell you, it’s _not_ fun. And yeah, I avoided conflict within my family, but you know what? I did damn well on my own without help from other angels.”

Amenadiel’s eyes narrowed. “Gabriel…”

Gabriel snorted. “You can ‘Gabriel’ at me all you want, but honestly? If this is how you treated your own brother, I want nothing to do with it.”

With that, Gabriel gave a big flap, rising into the sky. He didn’t even look to see Amenadiel’s expression, or cared if any humans saw him. He just simply needed _away,_ and knew that taking flight was the only way he could think of to do it.

* * *

Lucifer exited the elevator to his home, sighing as he rubbed his temples. He’d stopped by Linda’s office, but had been informed that Gabriel had left for some flight time. However, that had been hours ago, and Lucifer figured that with how tired Gabriel had been, he must have made his way back to the penthouse. However, the lights were out, and Lucifer frowned, looking around briefly before he walked toward a light switch.

“He’s not here.”

Lucifer flicked on the light and stared at where the voice came from. Amenadiel was seated on his couch, slumped over and cradling a tumbler of some liquor. The Devil cocked his head to the side and approached, brow furrowed. “Who’s not here?”

Amenadiel exhaled before taking a drink and setting the tumbler down. “Gabriel. He’s not here.”

Lucifer only needed to take in Amenadiel’s dejected expression and posture before it clicked. “What did you do?”

“I tried to talk to him about returning to Heaven.”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “And let me guess, he didn’t care for your message? What a shock.”

“I didn’t even get that far.” Amenadiel stood, facing Lucifer and crossing his arms. “I had only gotten as far as telling him he shouldn’t be seen by mortals before he got this idea in his head that I was telling him he couldn’t take care of himself.”

Lucifer walked over to his bar to pour himself a drink. “Did you ever get the impression that that’s all how anyone ever treated our brother before? I hate to break it to you, but everyone treated him like he was made of glass.”

“And you were any better?” Amenadiel narrowed his eyes, brow knitting together.

“I can’t say for certain other than I distinctly recall letting him in on some of my more interesting ideas.” Lucifer took a sip of the brandy before giving Amenadiel a look. “I didn’t insist on him staying right by our Father, now did I?”

“Well, what did you do? He didn’t exactly look like he’d be even willing to listen to going back to Heaven.”

Lucifer eyed Amenadiel’s crossed arms and huffed in exasperation. “Do you recall the argument we had at the hospital? Gabriel wasn’t willing to go back then, and I doubt he’s any more willing mere hours later. If he wants to go back to home sweet home, then he’ll make that choice, not you.”

Amenadiel took a step forward, glaring. “He’s in danger, Luci. Can’t you see that?”

“From who?” Lucifer met Amenadiel’s eyes with his own, matching stubbornness for stubbornness. “Unless I missed something, he’s not from here. What might be a danger to us might not apply to him. We don’t know.”

“Did you forget that one of our brothers was shot?” Amenadiel challenged. “We don’t know what killed him.”

“You’re right, we don’t know.” Lucifer set his glass down, already fed up with the conversation. “And yes, I was at the crime scene. I know our Gabriel is dead. However, I have the distinct feeling that this Gabriel is connected to the murder of our brother.”

“And what made you come to that conclusion?”

“The fact that there was another body the detective and I went to investigate about a couple of hours ago.” Lucifer crossed his own arms. “Gabriel talked about vessels and angels possessing people. Rather Exorcist-like, if you ask me. The body I ran into, however, had its neck snapped without any outside interference. I suspect what caused it might have been internal instead.”

Amenadiel shook his head. “That’s not possible.”

“Oh, I assure you, it is likely very possible.” Lucifer pulled a quarter out of his pocket and spun it into the air, holding it aloft with merely a thought. “We have the capability to manipulate outside forces. Gabriel acts as though he should have more power than he does. Tell me, do you know what his abilities are as far as he’s concerned?”

“He calls prayers ‘angel radio’. He thinks he’s able to manipulate time.” Amenadiel frowned. “He also said that he was invisible while he flew. What other abilities does he supposedly have?”

“Other than apparently seeing what usually isn’t visible to anyone, having an automatic smite key handy whenever he snaps, and thinking he can make stuff appear using the same trick?” Lucifer rose a brow. “I haven’t had such abilities in a few billion years, if you’ll recall.”

Amenadiel looked as though he were mulling it over. “If God from his world hadn’t removed the ability like ours did after Michael, Gabriel, and you helped to create the heavens, then he still has those same powers?”

“Had,” corrected Lucifer. “He had those powers. It seems as though his abilities were stripped away.”

“But why though? If he was that powerful before, why isn’t he now, and what does that have to do with our Gabriel’s murder?”

“Because whatever murdered our brother likely has the same abilities.”

Amenadiel drew in a sharp breath. “You think it’s his Michael?”

“I don’t know.” Lucifer returned the coin to his pocket and shook his head. “Right now all I know is that he likely brought over his own personal Jack the Ripper.”

“If it is another angel from his world, how are we going to stop them?”

“That, brother, is a very good question.” Lucifer looked toward the window, thinking. “I do intend on finding out.”

* * *

Chloe sighed as she went through the paperwork on her desk. Between the backup from her leave and the new case, or cases apparently, she hadn’t had a chance to go home yet. She rubbed her forehead as she placed yet another file atop her growing pile of finished reports and sighed.

“Long night, Decker?”

She glanced up, raising an eyebrow at the speaker. Acting Lieutenant Greg Thomas. He’d been transferred to the department after the Pierce fiasco, and so far, she hadn’t had any run-ins with him. However, that didn’t mean that she knew what he was like. “Um, yeah, it’s been a long day actually.”

Lt. Thomas took a seat before Chloe, studying her for a moment before speaking. “I read your file. You’ve got a good record, even if you have a questionable partner.”

Chloe had to agree with that, though knowing what she did now, a lot of Lucifer’s quirkiness made sense. However, she had to say something since Lucifer was her partner. “We work well together, as weird as it sounds. He brings… a unique look to cases.”

“Regardless, I don’t see how a night club owner was able to become a consultant to the LAPD.” Thomas crossed his arms. “And considering his connection with the current case and his connections with prior cases, I have to wonder if it’s such a good idea.”

“Sir, if I may,” Chloe began, folding her hands together over her desk and meeting his eyes directly with her own, “Lucifer was the first person who knew anything was wrong with Marcus Pierce. He’s also saved not just my life, but several other people’s lives in the process. He’s unorthodox, he’s probably the worst at being sensitive to another’s feelings, but he’s probably the best partner I’ve ever had.” The fact that she was having to again defend the fact she had Lucifer as a partner was ridiculous, especially since she shouldn’t have had to. Her record spoke well enough on its own.

Lt. Thomas seemed to be thinking it over, however, which was better than she could have thought when this particular topic came up. “I’m going to allow this, but I am going to keep an eye on it. Anything that comes up that I don’t like, I’m separating the two of you.”

She sighed, nodding. That was probably the best she was going to get. “I understand. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet.” Lt. Thomas stood, and Chloe stood with him. “I don’t like the situation, and with everything that’s happened in this department, I have to be critical of any prior decisions. I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt, otherwise I would have separated you both immediately.”

Chloe nodded again, and shook the lieutenant’s hand when he offered it. When he left, Chloe collapsed back into her seat, sighing and rubbing her forehead. She hoped Lucifer appreciated just how much she would stand up for him, since she had a feeling that if the lieutenant thought she was compromised, she’d find herself out of a job.


	4. This Game of Angry Birds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one's late! I had a relative pass away at the end of April, and it was hard getting back to writing this fic. However, hopefully this chapter makes up for it. Sorry about the length, though.

Maze didn’t like it when there was a target that managed to vanish into thin air.

All during the hunt she went on to find Ben Rivers, it was easy to track where he’d gone and how he had evaded her. Even after she let him go, he still had been easy to track, and while she liked the chase he’d led her on, it still was a rather straightforward encounter. Maze could deal with easy if she had fun in the capturing department, but it was when she found herself tracking smoke that she became irritated.

Like the person responsible for murdering Gabriel. Sure, the guy that Lucifer found in Lux seemed to be his brother, but even Maze could tell he wasn’t exactly the same, and didn’t interest her nearly as much as the angel murderer did. After all, it had to be a pretty powerful person to manage to murder an angel, and that tinged the entire hunt with just enough danger that Maze would enjoy it if she wasn’t chasing a phantom.

There was literally no evidence to suggest who it could have been, and Maze couldn’t exactly figure out what was going on with either Gabriel’s body or the meatbag’s to figure out a trail. Therefore she decided to go to the one person that she figured might have a clue. After all, ‘Gabriel’ had appeared shortly before the bodies were discovered, so there had to be a connection.

Tracking the copycat angel down to the police bar was easy enough. Why he had decided to go there instead of any other place in the city was beyond her, but then again it might have been because he didn’t know. Angels were funny like that, and naïve. She didn’t even glance at the other patrons at the bar this early in the day, instead making a beeline to the only person that didn’t look like he fit in very well.

‘Gabriel’ for his part looked like he was slouched over a beer bottle, sighing and rubbing his forehead as he sat at the bar. Maze didn’t even pay the bartender any mind as she quickly reached for the back of his neck and shoved him face-first against the bar. She then leaned over him and glared. “All right, spill. Who are you, and what the hell is going on?” Glancing toward the other patrons who seemed about to intervene, she gave them a look. “Collecting a bounty.”

“Please don’t tell me this is your idea of foreplay.” ‘Gabriel’ twisted around enough to look at Maze. “The last twenty-four hours have not been fun and I am not in the mood.”

“Ha ha, funny.” She relented however, letting her hand stray toward her blade just in case she needed it. “I’d start talking unless you want me to find out what kind of pressure I can put on you to make you talk, though I’d enjoy it if you didn’t. It’s more fun that way.”

‘Gabriel’ straightened, rubbing the back of his neck as he glared at her. “You really want me to say something in front of all these people?”

Maze just tilted her head. “You’re right. We need somewhere private for me to get the answers out of you.”

“Well, that’s one thing that’s the same,” ‘Gabriel’ snarked. “Demons torturing people. Why am I not surprised?”

“I don’t care what’s the same or not. I do care if there’s a threat I need to take care of.” Maze leaned in, eyes narrowing. “You’re currently that threat.”

‘Gabriel’ sighed. “Okay, okay, fine, I’ll talk.” He turned fully to face her, crossing his arms. “It’s not like you don’t already know I’m an angel.”

Maze glared again before grabbing his arm and yanking him toward the bathroom. Shoving him inside, she closed the door and leaned against it. “So who are you?”

‘Gabriel’ rolled his eyes as he straightened. “The archangel Gabriel, messenger of God, yadda yadda yadda. You know that spiel.”

“No you’re not.”

‘Gabriel’ sighed in exasperation. “And why don’t you believe that? Lemme guess, the other guy? I’m _not_ from around here, remember?”

“Well, how did you get here?” Maze challenged. “If you’re not from around here, you should know that.”

‘Gabriel’ shrugged. “No clue. Didn’t Lucifer already tell you this before?”

“I wanna hear all this from you. It helps me figure out if I should kill you or not.”

“Oh really?” He rose an eyebrow, disbelief evident. “And how are you going to do that?”

“I have my ways.” Maze looked him over again, crossing her arms as she did so. “How’d you get stabbed?”

“Michael stabbed me.” ‘Gabriel’ crossed his own arms and glared. “I was saving humans from his rampage and he ran me through with an archangel blade.”

“That’s a lie.”

“Excuse me?”

Maze rolled her eyes at the angel. “There is no way that your brother did that to you.”

“Oh yeah?” ‘Gabriel’ narrowed his eyes. “You know Michael?”

“I know what Lucifer’s told me.” Maze glared. “And Michael is one of the most boring angels he ever described.”

“Well that’s true.” ‘Gabriel’ tilted his head to the side. “Still doesn’t make my story a lie.”

“Whatever.” Maze snorted. “You mentioned that you had trouble with a demon before. Which one?”

“Asmodeus.” The angel’s gaze was steady, studying her now instead of glaring. “There’s a whole story there I would rather not get into about how I ended up with him, but he tortured me and stole my grace until I got out.”

Maze rolled that around in her head. The last she’d heard about Asmodeus was that Lucifer had locked the Duke of Hell away for yet another attempt to usurp the throne of Hell. As far as she knew, Asmodeus was still trapped. “Well, hate to break it to you, but he’s been locked up for the last hundred years. Lucifer didn’t appreciate Asmodeus’s last attempt on his life.”

That caused ‘Gabriel’ to glare again. “And I keep telling you people I don’t belong here! Haven’t any of you heard of alternate realities?”

“No and I don’t care.” Maze continued to glare. “All I know is that something is going on around here and you’re connected to it.”

“How would I be connected to anything here?”

Maze was unimpressed by the annoyed look on ‘Gabriel’s’ face. “I could mention how the _real_ Gabriel was murdered, the fact that someone snapped some human’s neck without touching them, or how you appeared soon after both of those things happened. So spill it. How are you connected?”

‘Gabriel’ snorted and moved to shove her out of the way, but Maze grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him so his back hit the wall. He grabbed her wrist right after, causing Maze to twist both appendages around to break the hold. Soon after, fists started flying, and while ‘Gabriel’ was favoring his middle, Maze couldn’t help but notice that he was actually pretty _good_ at it.

She dodged out of the way of one of his fists and twisted around, planting one hand at his back to shove him away. ‘Gabriel’ countered by grabbing that arm and using the momentum to twist her around so that her back met the wall. Maze grinned, breaking the hold and shoving him back. She then stalked forward, causing ‘Gabriel’ to retreat a few steps back before he tried to throw a punch toward her stomach. She ducked out of the way, grabbing his arm again while sweeping her leg out to trip him up. As he fell, he latched onto her arm and pulled her down with him, causing both to land in a sprawled heap on the floor.

“You know, this is a whole lot like foreplay.” Maze smirked. “You’re certainly more fun to fight with than the humans are.”

“Experience.” ‘Gabriel’ then shoved, rolling the both of them over so that he was on top. “Not too bad yourself. Reminds me of my ex.”

Maze rocked her body, rolling them both again so that she was back on top. “Ex? Who’s that? Are they interested in a threesome?”

‘Gabriel’ winced as he shook his head. “Doubt it. She left me for a stick in the mud.”

Maze grabbed his wrists and forced both of his arms over his head to pin them there. “Were you that bad or was she that boring?”

“Kali, boring?” ‘Gabriel’ huffed out a laugh before he winced again. “Nah, she had a hell of a temper. Certainly was assertive though.”

Maze sat up properly now, pinning his legs with her weight. “So you were that bad. Who’d ever want to date someone boring otherwise?”

“I will have you know that I am a great performer in bed.” ‘Gabriel’s’ eyebrows furrowed together. “Aren’t we still fighting?”

“Are you going to be a good boy and answer my questions?”

“I _did_ answer them. Not my fault that you don’t like the answers.” ‘Gabriel’ pushed upward, trying to dislodge her. “Lemme up.”

“This is kind of kinky.” Maze smirked. “You sure that demons aren’t your thing?”

‘Gabriel’ just gave her a look. “What are you, some kind of nympho?”

“What can I say? I like sex.” Maze shrugged. “Besides, you didn’t answer my question about how you’re related to everything going on.”

‘Gabriel’ thumped his head back. “Alright, _fine,_ I’ll tell you what I know.” Maze rose a disbelieving eyebrow and ‘Gabriel’ snorted. “What? I can tell the truth. Not like there’s much to tell, anyway.”

Maze loosened her grip on his wrists, but didn’t let go quite yet. “Well, start talking.”

‘Gabriel’ rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Okay, pushy. Look, I just woke up here. I don’t know what’s going on. I don’t even know how I’m connected other than I’ve got the same name as Luci’s dead brother. That’s all.”

Maze let go of his wrists and felt disappointed. “Well, that took the fun out of this. There’s really nothing you’re hiding?”

“Sorry.” Gabriel shrugged, then looked down himself and quirked an eyebrow at Maze. “Uh, ya mind letting up here? My legs are falling asleep.”

Maze narrowed her eyes but stood, nudging Gabriel none-too-gently in the side when she was on her feet. “Come on.”

“Ow.” Gabriel glared, rubbing the spot. “Come on?”

“You’re coming with me,” Maze stated.

“Uh huh. And why is that again?”

“Because you’re going to help me catch a killer.”

Gabriel looked skeptical. “This is all related to the ‘you’re connected to all this’ thing, isn’t it?”

Maze didn’t even look at him as she strode to the door. “Yep. Now, c’mon.”

“Uh, you do remember I can’t use any of my abilities, right?” Gabriel sat up and crossed his arms. “My mojo’s on the fritz.”

“And that’s why you’re perfect.” Maze lifted an eyebrow in challenge. “You’re the angel, you can’t like humans killing angels any more than Lucifer does.”

“You’re right. I don’t.” Gabriel stood and dusted himself off, looking over the damage. The fact the wall had a sizeable dent in it was pretty evident, as was the crack in the floor. “We’re going to get going before the humans notice the mess, right?”

Maze rolled her eyes again before she pulled the door open. “They’ll only notice it was you if you stick around.”

“Fair point.” Gabriel followed her, and Maze couldn’t help but feel like they were going to catch the perp.

* * *

“Sulfur.” Chloe read that line again in Ella’s report, frowning. “What does sulfur have to do with anything?”

She was seated at her desk, looking over the file that Ella had given her as she came into work. Ella had been baffled by the results, and Chloe had decided to wait until Lucifer showed up to hopefully take him when she questioned the second victim’s family. As it was, she had a hard time figuring out why a FedEx driver with no criminal record would ever have a reason to know Lucifer’s brother, let alone have a grudge against him. Not unless there was something Lucifer or Amenadiel weren’t saying.

She looked back over the reports, which included the ballistics from the gun. The bullets were another mystery. They were fired from the same gun, but the composition of the bullets was unknown. They were still trying to identify just what kind of bullets they were, and could only come up with the fact they weren’t lead or even silver, though they looked like they could be the latter.

Huffing, she looked back at the information from Jibra’il’s murder. The bodies were found in the same area and died in the same timeframe, the bullets from Jibra’il’s body matched the gun found at the second victim’s location, and everything pointed to the fact that it was highly likely that the second victim murdered Jibra’il. Except, somehow he broke his own neck right after? That wasn’t meshing.

She rubbed her forehead, wondering if they had missed something, when she noticed Dan walking up. Her brow furrowed, since it seemed like there was a serious expression on his face and wasn’t too happy about something as he shifted a file from one hand to the other. She put the file she had to the side as Dan stopped in front of Chloe’s desk. “Hey Dan, what’s up?”

Dan closed his eyes and shook his head before he spoke. “This is going to sound really weird, but have you noticed anything strange about Gabriel?”

Chloe mentally ran through anything that would suggest Gabriel was weird, and aside from a serious sweet tooth, Gabriel didn’t seem all that different than Lucifer. “Weird how? I mean, he’s a sugar junky, but that’s about all I can think of.”

Dan grimaced and shook his head again. “Not like that. Like, well, something not quite right.”

Chloe folded her hands as she went through everything in her head. She knew Gabriel was an actual angel, but that wasn’t something that should be revealed. At least, not in her books. She was still coping from finding out Lucifer was, well, _the_ Lucifer. “Sorry, I can’t think of anything that you might consider not right.”

Dan sighed heavily and plopped down in the seat next to her desk. “Here’s the thing. I just got the report from the hospital, and from everything the doctors wrote he should be dead. Like, dead dead.”

“Maybe he just got lucky and his attacker wasn’t able to kill him.”

“According to the doctors, he didn’t.” Dan opened the file to point out what the doctor’s findings were. “They said that he had scarring that would be consistent with a fatal wound to the heart. Somehow it’d healed as far as they knew, which doesn’t make sense since Lucifer stated Gabriel was stabbed a couple of nights ago. Plus…” Dan grimaced and shook his head a third time.

Chloe frowned. “Plus what?”

Dan exhaled sharply. “This is going to sound crazy, but I think Gabriel has wings.”

Chloe blinked, not expecting that to come out of Dan’s mouth. “What?”

“I said it sounded crazy.”

“Wings.” Even Chloe hadn’t seen Gabriel’s wings, though she was definitely sure he had them. Otherwise why would Lucifer claim him as a brother?

Dan winced and ran a hand down his face. “Look, back at the hospital, I could have sworn that I saw some sprout from his back when he went down at the hospital. Then I blinked, and they were gone, but Gabriel’s nose had stopped bleeding and there wasn’t anything left of it. And I know I was trying to hand him a tissue, but he’d somehow grabbed it without me noticing.”

Chloe could feel a headache forming. All of that wasn’t exactly easy to explain away, especially since she didn’t know how to. Finally she looked toward the meeting room and made up her mind. “All right, come on.”

She pulled out her phone and typed out a quick text to Lucifer, hoping that he’d hurry up and make an appearance before this got too far, but she doubted it. She then stood, leading Dan toward the meeting room and closing the door firmly behind them both before closing the blinds. “Okay, this is really going to sound crazy, but you’re right.”

It was Dan’s turn to blink as he stared at Chloe. “I’m right?”

Chloe took a deep breath before speaking. “You’re right, there is something weird about Gabriel. He’s not human.”

“Now you’re just yanking my chain. Chloe-“

“Not only is he not human, but neither is Lucifer,” Chloe continued, causing Dan to gape. “Lucifer is really _the Lucifer._ And Gabriel, he’s _the_ Gabriel. They’re angels.”

Dan seemed to process this for a moment before shaking his head. “You’re really joking now. How are they angels? They don’t act like them.”

“And Amenadiel doesn’t? I mean, the facts are there, how we can’t seem to find anything on any of them before they showed up.” Chloe was praying now that Lucifer showed up. “I know both you and I did our own digging when Lucifer first appeared, and we came up with the same thing.”

Dan continued to shake his head. “That doesn’t make sense. He’s been shot before and his brother was murdered. How could he be the Devil if all of that’s happened? Besides, if he’s the Devil, then why would an angel be anywhere near him?”

Why indeed, Chloe thought, but she didn’t voice it. Even she had a hard time understanding everything about what she knew about Lucifer. But, that was something she already expected as soon as she realized it was true. Besides, she’d already fallen into her freakout, and she absolutely refused to have another one. “Look, he’s not a bad person. Sure, he’s got his flaws and everything, but he’s been honest with us from the beginning.”

Dan bit his lip, looking as though he were trying to consider everything. “So Lucifer’s really the Devil?”

Chloe nodded, and watched as Dan ran a hand through his hair. Turning around, he gripped his hair tight before she stepped forward, a hand raised to touch his shoulder. “Dan-“

“No.” Dan turned around abruptly, his hands raised as he backed off a step. “No. You’re letting _Trixie_ near him. Hell, you’re letting Trixie near Maze, and if he’s really the Devil, then that means she’s really a-“

“Demon, yes.” One that Trixie adored, even if her daughter was currently mad at her. “Dan, they’ve saved her before. They’ve saved me. Lucifer’s saved me. I know it’s hard to wrap your head around, but-“

The door opened abruptly, and Lucifer stuck his head in, followed quickly by Gabriel. Lucifer looked between the two confused before he addressed Chloe. “Someone said they’d seen you pop in here. Is everything alright Detective?”

Dan’s face hardened, and he glared at Lucifer. “You stay away from my daughter.”

“Did we miss something?” Gabriel frowned between the two. “You both seem kinda…”

“Tense.” Lucifer was watching Dan now, his own frown marring his features. “I’d thought we’d gotten over this game of Angry Birds.”

Chloe sighed, covering her face with her hands. “Okay, we all need to sit down and talk.”

“And why should I believe a word he says? He’s the Devil, Chloe. He’s the prince of lies!”

Gabriel mouthed ‘wow’ before he shoved his brother further into the room. Closing the door behind him, he leaned against it. “Okay, someone needs to start talking fast. What the heck brought this on?”

“He’s the devil!” Dan jabbed a finger at Lucifer, which caused the angel’s face to grow angrier. “Apparently he’s been lying this entire time!”

Gabriel looked toward Chloe, who sighed and shook her head. “He saw your wings at the hospital, and the report from there stated that there was no way you could have survived your stabbing.”

“And you had to tell him what was going on.” Gabriel shook his head. “This became one giant Charlie-Foxtrot real fast.”

“Of course it did, because Detective Douche hasn’t liked me from the start and finally found a reason to hate me more.” Lucifer stood up straighter, readjusting his jacket. “Why wouldn’t he hate me? Everyone’s always said I was the root of all evil.”

Gabriel snapped, and grimaced when nothing happened, though Dan looked confused. “Sorry, habit.” Gabriel looked at Dan carefully then before he sighed. “Look, you wanna be pissy at Luci because he’s the Devil. I get it. But from where I’m standing, he’s not nearly as bad as the Lucifer I know.”

“The Lucifer you know?” Dan looked incredulous. “The hell does that mean?”

“He’s not from here, Dan. At least that’s what he keeps saying.” Chloe crossed her arms. “He says it’s complicated.”

“Damn straight it’s complicated.” Lucifer snorted. “However, I am not going to stand here and listen to Daniel accuse me of being evil when he doesn’t even know who I really am.”

“I don’t need to know anything else!”

Suddenly a whooshing sound went through the whole room which caused everyone to look toward Gabriel. Chloe’s eyes bugged out when she realized there were gigantic _wings_ sprouting from his back. Gabriel of course groaned. “And now this happens. Great timing.”

Dan just stared. “You’re really an angel.”

“What? You thought that he was some demon because he seemed to be agreeing with me?” Lucifer snorted. “There’s only one demon topside and it’s not him.”

Gabriel just shook his head. Scrunching his face, the wings slowly disappeared one after the other and the shorter angel crossed his arms. “Now that everyone’s stopped yelling, can we get back to the part about Danny boy thinking Lucifer’s evil? Cause I gotta tell you, he’s nothing like my Lucifer.”

“How do you know that?”

Lucifer glared at Dan and Chloe stepped into a position where she could hopefully stop one of them from hurting the other. Gabriel on the other hand shrugged. “He’s walking the Earth and there’s no Apocalypse.”

Dan blinked in surprise. “Huh?”

“My Lucifer’s a grade-A asshole. Yours is kind of an asshole, but not nearly as bad. Plus he associates with humans, which my brother wouldn’t be caught dead doing.” Gabriel shook his head. “Plus my Luci tried to stab me. I don’t see him doing that either, which means there’s only one explanation. He’s not the same and isn’t likely evil.”

“Isn’t likely?” Lucifer scowled at Gabriel. “That’s a real confidence booster.”

“Eh, gimme a bit, I’m still adjusting.” Gabriel looked toward Dan. “So, we cool?”

Dan huffed and moved toward the door. He cast one more look toward Lucifer before storming out. Chloe could only wince. “Sorry, just give him some time.”

“He’ll likely try and find a priest to do an exorcism or something.” Lucifer scoffed. “Like that would work.”

“I know a couple of yahoos that would try it for free.” At Lucifer’s confused glance, Gabriel shrugged. “Winchesters.”

“Ah yes, the rifles.” Lucifer looked carefully at his brother. “Where were you last night? You didn’t reappear after your tiff with Amenadiel.”

“I had to blow off some steam. Which reminds me…” He pointed at Chloe, who blinked. “I’m supposed to get something from you to help Maze with hunting down the moron that shot the other me?”

Chloe frowned. “We’re still not sure who’s the one that did it yet. It’s still being investigated.”

“Ugh, wonderful.” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Now I wish I could still snap my fingers and _do_ things.”

“That reminds me.” Lucifer looked toward Gabriel. “How _do_ demons work where you’re from? You said angels need vessels. Do demons need the same?”

Gabriel made a face. “Yeah, but unlike angels, they don’t need permission. They just take possession whenever they feel like it.”

“And they need the dead body of someone going to Hell to possess, correct?”

Gabriel’s eyes narrowed. “They don’t particularly care, but no, the body doesn’t have to be dead.” He looked between the two, frowning. “What, you think that someone from my world came with me?”

Lucifer waved a hand. “Not exactly, but we’re covering our bases, making sure no stone is left unturned. You know how that is, right?”

“Well, it’s the difference between demons and angels. We need permission, they don’t.” Gabriel shrugged. “The whole free will thing.”

Chloe just stared between the two, not comprehending entirely. “Wait, demons can possess people?”

“Yes they can, actually. They require a dead body in this world, generally someone that’s destined for Hell, but they can.” Lucifer shrugged. “Or could, had I not banned the practice a while back.”

“Is Maze-“

Lucifer shook his head before Chloe could finish her sentence. “Maze is actually in her true form. Well, with a glamour on, of course, but she’s in her own body. Otherwise I’m pretty sure humans would be running screaming by now.”

She glanced at Gabriel next. “And your demons don’t need a dead body, they can just possess anyone?”

“Yep.” Gabriel popped the ‘p’ at the end, leaning back. “Though they don’t have a physical body where I’m from. They look like smoke outside a body.”

“Which that’s another question.” Lucifer arched a brow at Gabriel. “You don’t care for demons, and yet you’re helping Maze out?”

“What can I say? She’s good at her job.”

Chloe cleared her throat. “Well Gabriel, I’m sorry we don’t have more to help. I’ll give Maze a call if something comes up.”

“Or you can just pray really hard at me.” Gabriel glanced toward Lucifer. “Anywho, I’m gonna skedaddle and see about doing my own investigating. Can’t be too hard since I used to do this stuff for kicks.”

“You used to do this stuff for kicks?” Lucifer looked confused. “What, in that other world you were a detective or something?”

Gabriel shook his head. “Nah, I used to find assholes and give them their just desserts.” He then gave a half-assed salute toward the two. “Later kiddos.”

Chloe watched as Gabriel disappeared through the door before she turned toward Lucifer. “Look, I’m sorry I told Dan about the Devil thing and it blowing up.”

Lucifer shrugged. “I can’t get too mad. After all, you did send me a text trying to get me here.” Lucifer held up his phone and started toward the door himself. “Well, aren’t we going, Detective? We still have to find our killer.”

That caused Chloe to nod. “Yeah, we need to talk to the second victim’s family. We got an ID on him and hopefully that’ll help with all of this.”

* * *

“Javier Santos.”

Lucifer looked over the picture that Chloe gave him with a grimace. Ugh, why did some of these victims look so _boring_? It was like they were begging for something exciting to happen to them. Not that he thought the poor chap had wanted to be murdered, but he did have to wonder sometimes. Humans still seemed to befuddle him in that department. “So he’s the delivery man?”

“Worked for FedEx. His brother reported him missing five days ago, and said that he thought he’d gone on a bender or something.” Chloe took the picture back, putting it back in the notepad she carried. “We’re just going to talk to him and see if he noticed anything strange.” She gave him a pointed look. “Which means we don’t need to alienate him.”

“Consider myself on my best behavior.” Chloe gave Lucifer a look, though the angel gestured for her to continue. Honestly, he was pretty sure that he’d die from boredom before he caused any mischief.

That idea was suddenly quashed the moment the door opened. Apparently the poor deceased sod had gotten the worst genes, while his brother was a _looker._ Dark hair slicked back, eyes a rich shade of brown, and he was wearing a button-up that certainly accentuated his figure. Lucifer was certain he’d seen him before, but where, the Devil couldn’t place.

The man looked from Chloe to Lucifer, his eyes seeming to pause for a moment at Lucifer, before he looked back toward Chloe. “Can I help you?”

Chloe held up her badge. “I’m Detective Chloe Decker and this is my partner, Lucifer Morningstar. Are you Sergio Santos? We thought we might be able to ask you a few questions.”

“Especially about where you got that shirt. It does wonderful things to your figure.” Lucifer added, gesturing toward it with a smile.

Chloe rolled her eyes, but the man narrowed his eyes. “Yeah, I’m Sergio. Is this about Javier?”

Chloe nodded. “Could we come in to discuss this?”

Sergio hesitated for a moment before stepping aside. As they entered, Lucifer noted the apartment seemed nice enough. He had little tchotchkes scattered about, and Lucifer noted a few pictures of notable stars sitting around, each with Sergio posing with them and signed. “I see you rub elbows with the rich and famous,” he noted lightly, picking up one that showed Katy Perry and examining it.

“Oh, yeah.” Sergio shifted, reaching to take the picture from Lucifer carefully. “I run a hair and nail salon on Melrose. Do pretty good business.” He looked them both over, frowning. “This is about my brother, right?”

“Well, your brother and my brother, I’m afraid.”

Chloe elbowed him, causing Lucifer to look down with a frown. “I’m sorry Mister Santos, but your brother was found in San Pedro with a broken neck.”

Sergio’s eyes bugged, and Lucifer decided to try and console the man. “If it’s any consolation, he probably died quickly. Didn’t really feel much of a thing I believe. Though I do have to wonder why he would have any grudge against my brother.”

Sergio stared at Lucifer. “Grudge against your brother? What are you talking about?”

“Well, he was the one found with a loaded gun. The same firearm used to murder a perfect angel.” Lucifer’s eyes narrowed. “I assure you, I will find a certain place in Hell to place him for this crime.”

_“Lucifer!”_ Chloe hissed, glaring at him. She tugged him away a few feet. “What are you doing?”

“Well isn’t it obvious? Ascertaining whether he knew his brother was a defiler of the divine.” Lucifer shook his head in amazement. “I can’t say I’m surprised that some humans would wish to destroy my Father, after all.”

“This is not the time or place to say that.” Chloe’s jaw clenched, and she looked back toward Sergio, who was covering his mouth with a devastated look on his face. “Now, can we talk about the facts here?”

“Right, of course. We’ll save the divine wrath for later.”

The turned back toward Sergio, who held up a hand for a moment to take a deep breath. “Look, I’m sorry, but my brother couldn’t possibly be the guy you’re looking for.”

“And why would that be?” Chloe took a step forward, raising a hand to try and comfort the man. “Did he have any enemies or something that would set him up like this?”

Sergio shook his head. “No man, he was always helping out our church. We would get together and get drinks once a week. He lived on the other side of LA, and his neighborhood was quiet for the most part. He’d proposed to his girlfriend last week, and they were supposed to get married.”

“So no grudges or anything? No one that would want to hurt him?” When Sergio shook his head, Chloe bit her lip. “Well, if you can direct us to his girlfriend, we’d very much appreciate it.” Chloe then handed him a business card. “Also give us a call if there’s something you can remember. Hopefully we can find the person responsible for all of this.”

After getting the name, Lucifer and Chloe left, though Lucifer was annoyed. They still were no closer to finding Gabriel’s killer, and from all appearances, the poor sod wasn’t likely to be a suspect, dead or no. If he were, Lucifer would have no problem going down to Hell to give instructions on the treatment he’d get.

“Look, Lucifer, I know you’re wanting to get to the bottom of who killed your brother-“

“Damn right I do.”

Chloe sighed. “But you can’t run around accusing people of it when we have no proof.” She leaned against the roof of her car when they got to it, looking him over. “He was grieving for his brother just as much as you are.”

Lucifer was silent, thinking things through. He wasn’t going to pretend that he wasn’t angry, not since anger was a thing he could do right now. He did finally give a nod, frowning. “Very well Detective, I shall abstain from revealing my brother was also a victim in this crime as well. However, I will warn you that should we find Gabriel’s true killer, I won’t be so kind.”

He didn’t miss the troubled expression on Chloe’s face, but he couldn’t ignore facts. There was an angel killer on the loose. If they weren’t stopped, Gabriel wouldn’t be the last victim, and Lucifer was certain that humanity would suffer alongside the Heavenly Host.


End file.
